


Not worth talking about

by OkaraWrites



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: .....pation, Come Swallowing, Cunnilingus, Eventual Smut, F/M, Friends to Lovers, I see you shiver with antici..., Like really slow build, Masturbation, Mutual Masturbation, Oral Sex, Slow Build, Vaginal Fingering, oral giving
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:21:17
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 23,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24344920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OkaraWrites/pseuds/OkaraWrites
Summary: Nothing gets past your best friend Tifa. When she notices you taking an interest in a certain gunslinger, she has to find out more.
Relationships: Vincent Valentine/Reader
Comments: 80
Kudos: 147





	1. Chapter 1: Girls night

The rest of the team and you had been travelling all day. You had all hoped to reach Junon by the evening, but a few setbacks meant that you had to make a stop at small village in the middle of nowhere in the hopes of finding an inn. The village comprised of a few small shops, a few houses and what seemed to be a farm. As Cloud and Barratt headed into one of the shops to ask for directions the rest of you divided into smaller groups to explore the small town. You, Tifa and Vincent decided to explore the northern part of the village.  
Tifa had always gone out of her way to make you feel like a part of the AVALANCH family and had become one of your closest friends. You had already joined AVALANCH on their quest by the time Vincent had been found in his coffin in the basement of the ShrinRa mansion. In recent months you had found yourself becoming friendly with the mysterious man, even if your friendship mainly comprised of you both enjoying each other’s company in silence. Whilst he very rarely initiated conversation, he was always willing to listen to whatever you had to say and he would offer occasional nods and hums to confirm that he was taking in all you had to say.  
As the three of you walked Tifa spotted a small shop selling soaps and other luxurious toiletries. “Ooo I wonder if they sell face masks. I haven’t had the chance to really take care of my skin in so long!” The brunette said excitedly as she led us to the shops entrance. You couldn’t help but join her in stocking up on skincare products. As the two of you browsed through the various products Vincent waiting by the door.  
“Not interested in getting anything Vincent?” You asked.  
“Not particularly, a simple bar of soup works well enough for me” He replied seemingly amused by the number of different scented soups and face masks in your arms.  
You couldn’t help but smile at the image of Vincent applying a face mask that entered your mind. “Well I can’t argue with your technique when your hair looks like that” You said to him with a genuine smile.  
With that you turned to go to the counter and pay for your items. Tifa was already paying and looked at you with raised eyebrows.  
“What?” you questioned.  
“Oh nothing” Tifa said with a giggle as she resumed paying.  
You left the shops with your bags and saw the others waiting for you.  
“Right, so there’s no inn. But the farm owner usually has an empty barn house that he has agreed to rent to us for the night.” Cloud informed you all.  
You all made your way over to the barn house. The house had two large bedrooms with several beds in each. The girls went to one room and the boys to the other. You, Tifa, Yuffie and Aerith settled in your room.  
“Right so, who’s up for a girls night tonight? Tifa and I bought have enough face masks to go around.” You offered with a excited smile.  
“Yes! I have snacks too!” Aerith joined in your excitement.  
Yuffie and Tifa seemed just as excited about the plan and you all proceeded to put your hair up and start applying face masks.  
The conversation had turned into a Q and A answering all of Yuffie’s questions about relationships and men.  
“So like, what’s it like to do it?” Yuffie asked with wide eyes.  
This caused you to choke on your drink a little. You were hoping that Aerith or Tifa would take the stand on this one but you looked up to see them both looking at you.  
“Why are you looking at me with this one?” You asked as if offended by their silent assumption.  
“Well, you’ve traveled around the world so much. I guess I’ve just assumed you have experience.” Tifa said, her smirk slightly cracking her drying mask.  
“Experienced?! Haha! God no. I’ve only ever been physically with one guy. And if you want to go off of that Yuffie, it’s shit.” You laughed still taken aback.  
“Oh that is a surprise.” Aerith thought aloud.  
Yuffie, eager to get details pressed for information “Well you can’t just tell us that and not tell us why it was shit? Who was the lucky fella?”  
You scratch the back of your head awkwardly at the memory you would rather forget “Well it was a guy I went to college with, and as for why it was shit…well I just didn’t get much out of it. Like, there was nothing terrible about it, just no fireworks either.”  
“Is that why you guys broke up? I mean I’m guessing you aren’t together considering we’ve never even heard of him.” Yuffie asked.  
“No, that finished because he cheated on me.” You could feel that your revelation changed the tone of the room so in an attempt to lighten it again you added “It’s no big deal though, we were only together a few months and him doing that saved me from a disappointing sex life.”  
“No offence (Y/N) but it doesn’t seem to have gotten much better since.” Tifa said with a slight look of pity on her face. Aerith nudged her in the arm “You can’t say that Tifa!”  
You just laughed at the two girls “I’m just saying that it’s about time you gave it another go” Tifa defended herself.  
“Nah, not interested.” You quickly responded, hoping to cut the conversation there.  
“There must be someone you like?” Aerith questioned  
“Oh there definitely is!” Tifa replied before you had a chance to speak.  
“Who who who?” Yuffie chimed in  
“There really isn’t” You said as you shook your head at the girls desperate for you to admit a name to them.  
Tifa was looking at you as if trying to read your mind. “What is up with you looking at me like that?” You ask confused by your friend strange behavior.  
Tifa break eye contact with you and turns to the other girls. As is to change the subject she says “Why don’t we play a game?”  
You all agreed that that sounded like fun and waited for Tifa to explain what she might have in mind. “Right how about a game of truth or dare?”  
The four of you took turns asking each other questions. After a few rounds of questions like ‘If you could go anywhere where would it be?’ things started getting a little more personal. It was now you turn to ask Tifa. “Right, Tifa, when was the last time you had sex?”  
You hadn’t expected this to be a ‘harsh’ question but then again you had no idea of the answer.  
Tifa cleared her throat “Well umm, maybe like a week ago or so…” Tifas voice trailed off and she stared at the floor with her cheeks bright red.  
Yuffie burst out laughing “What!? But we were all in the Costa Del Sol last week! Who was it? And how? You were sharing a room with…” Yuffies smile vanished with realization  
“Cloud” Aerith finished the young ninjas sentence. An awkward silence fell upon the room. Aeriths face went from realization to a smile “Well at least you’re not in the same situation as (Y/N).” This caused you all to laugh and you were more than happy to be the butt of the joke.  
“Speaking of which” Aerith continued “I believe it is Tifas turn to ask you a question” Aerith turned to you.  
“Go on, I will be 100% honest” You reply looking at Tifa.  
Tifa sat directly in front of you as if to make sure there was not sign of lying in your eyes.  
“Ok, have you ever imagined what it would be like to sleep with any of the boys currently in the next room?”  
You felt your face heat up. “possibly, by accident I may have at some point.” You answered  
“Oh no you don’t! Yes or no?” Yuffie objected to your answer.  
“Fine, yes!” You admitted.  
“HA! I knew it!” Tifa said smugly  
“Oh my god who?!” The other two girls asked in unison.  
“That wasn’t the question.” You countered “And on that note, I’m getting ready for bed”  
You left the room to the girls’ complaints to make your way to the bathroom. As you approached the bathroom you saw Vincent exit. As he noticed you approach, he greeted you with a small nod. He was still wearing his usual attire minus his red cloak, black glove and boots. You couldn’t help but take note of how his cloak hides the defined lines of his jawbone.  
“You heading to bed now?” You had to fill the silence. He hummed in response. You jumped as you felt his ungloved hand skim past your face. You found it hard to ignore the thumping of your heart in your chest.  
“One of your hairs was stuck to your face.” He stated in answer of your unspoken question.  
It was then that you remembered your face was still covered in a pale green face mask. At least it was hiding the harsh blush that was developing beneath it. “Right, well I had best go and...” You mumbled as you motioned toward the bathroom door. Vincent nodded slightly and moved aside to let you access the room.  
You took your time in washing up for bed, mainly to try and get over the embarrassment of that little encounter. Once you were washed and ready for bed you mad your way back to the bedroom. Aerith and Yuffie were already fast asleep but Tifa was sitting up in bed reading her book. You settled down on the bed next to her. You turned to your friend “Tifa, I’m really sorry about putting you on the spot. I had no idea..”  
“It’s fine” Tifa said with a chuckle. “I didn’t have a chance to tell you about it. To be honest I don’t know how I feel about it all. I don’t feel like it has changed anything” She said looking over to the sleeping Aerith. “But speaking of things we haven’t told each other, when were you going to tell me you had a thing for Vincent?”  
It took you a couple of seconds to know what to say. You hadn’t even thought about it much. “I mean, he’s obviously handsome, and smart, and tall. Like have you seen how long his legs are!” you both laugh quietly. “I just know nothing would come out of it other than me feeling like a fool…Please don’t say anything to anyone”  
“Your secret is safe with me.” Tifa reassured you. “But what makes you so sure nothing would come of it? He spends more time with you than anyone else.”  
“Yeah I think the whole being in love with someone else tends to make a person a bit more romantically reserved.” You replied  
“Hmm, well either way there’s no way a girl who looks like you will be on the market for too long” Tifa said with a reassuring smile.


	2. A cup of tea

The next you woke up early. The sun was just about coming up and the three girls in the surrounding beds were still sleeping peacefully. You quietly got changed and made your way out of the room. You couldn’t hear anyone else so assumed everyone was still asleep.  
You made your way downstairs and decided sit on the deck at the front of the barn house to watch the sun rise. There was a small bench, so you decided to take a seat. You crossed your legs and made yourself comfortable. The red hue of the sky made your mind wonder to Vincent. You thought about the conversation you had with Tifa last night. How had she noticed that you had a crush on Vincent? If she had noticed, had Vincent?! You put your head in your hands and slowly rubbed your temples.  
“Morning” You heard Vincent’s deep voice as he settled next to you. The bench was a two-seater, but with your legs crossed you right thigh was so close to his that you could feel his body heat.  
“Morning” you replied as you looked over at him, offering him a smile.  
You sat in silence for a few moments. Despite your thoughts of the man next to you making you feel awkward, you always find his presence calming. Before you realised you were voicing your inner thoughts “You always make everything feel calm”  
Your eyes widened but you remained looking forward. Vincent chuckled “I’m glad”. His response made you smile. You decided that it was silly stressing, he didn’t know and your growing friendship was too good to mess up.  
You turn in your seat so your body was directly facing Vincent. “Can I ask you something?”  
Vincent turned his face to you as if to say yes.  
“Would you consider me to be a friend?”  
Vincent's brows lifted slightly in surprise at your question. “Yes” He replied, eyes locking with yours. He continued “To mirror your sentiment, your company is calming, sometimes” He finished his reply with a hint of a smile barely visible over the top of his cape.  
You laughed and brought your hand to your chest in mock offence “Sometimes?”  
Vincent chuckled lowly “Well, sometimes it’s amusing and sometimes –“  
Vincent was cut off by the rest of the team leaving the barn house. Vincent’s expression returned to it’s usual stoic state. Your heart sunk seeing this but you didn’t let this show on your face.  
Once everyone was ready it was time to you to continue your travels. As you were walking you found yourself going over the conversation you had had with Vincent earlier that day. What was he going to say? You nudged Tifa on the arm. “Hey I need to talk to you” You whispered. Tifa slowed her pace slightly so you were a few paces behind the rest of the group.  
“Is this anything to do with the eye gazing session you were having this morning?” Tifa asked with a smirk  
“What? No! Well yes.” You said defensively. “How did you know about…” You didn’t want to say Vincent’s name out of fear that someone else would hear. “It’s made me paranoid.”  
Tifa laughed “Don’t be. You are discreet, it’s just that I recognise that sparkle in your eyes when you look at him. Anyways, what were you guys talking about this morning?”  
“Oh well that’s what I wanted to tell you about. I asked him if he saw me as a friend and he said yes then he said that my company was sometimes calming, sometimes amusing and he was going to say something else but then he didn’t because everyone walked out and now I don’t know what he was going to say and I don’t know if I should ask him and-“  
“Woah woah woah, take a breath!” Tifa stopped your rambling. “Let’s focus on being that calming company. I’m sure you’ll get a chance-.”  
“A chance for what?” Yuffie butted into the conversation.  
“A chance to … have a nice hot cup of tea when we get to Junon” You said. It was the first thing that came to mind but after you said it you couldn’t help but think about what a good idea that was.  
“Urgh, you guys are boring” The young ninja said as she skipped away.  
You and Tifa looked at each other to silently agree to stop the conversation.  
“Tifa!” Barrett called over. “Right, so when we get to Junon, Cloud and I are gunna go stock up on ammo. Could you hit us up with a bed for the night? An’ none of that 6 beds in a room stuff again. I can’t be dealin’ with Cid’s snoring again! Oh yeah and get one that’s pet friendly! Don’t want Red sleeping in no ally!”  
“So nothing too specific then” Tifa said with a smile and a roll of her eyes “Don’t worry, leave it with me”

Once you all got to Junon, Cloud turned to everyone. “Right, Barrett and I are going to stock up, Tifa is going to book an inn, meet back here in 2 hours.”  
You walk over to Tifa “I’ll join you”  
“What about your tea you were daydreaming about?” Yuffie laughed “I’ll go along with Tifa, you go get that cup of tea.” You were taken back by her thoughtfulness and notched it up to the influence Aerith and Tifa had had on her. “Aww thanks Yuffie” you said and the two girls made there way into the town. Aerith had gone with Red to look for a type of flower that supposedly grew in these parts of the world and Cait Sith had disappeared somewhere. Vincent and Cid were seated on a small concrete wall. You walked over to the two men. As soon as he saw you approach Vincent, ever the gentleman, stood.  
“Hey, I think I’m going to head to a café nearby if you guys would like to join me?” You asked the two men.  
“F**k it why not, not like I wanna freeze my ass of on a f****’n cold stone wall for the next two hours.” The pilot said as he stood and flicked his cigarette away.  
Vincent offered you a nod and the three of you walked to a café.


	3. Make believe

The café you decided on was small but was empty other than 2 other customers. The three of you took a seat at a small round table near the front window. A woman who looked to be in her mid to late 40’s came up to the table “What can I get you guys?” she asked with a friendly smile.  
“Could I get an earl grey tea please?” you answered mirroring her friendly smile. “Could you make that two?” Vincent followed up. “Three. Thanks” Cid added. “Three earl grey teas” The woman confirmed before she made her way back to the back of the café. A silence lingered between the three of you. A silence that you felt compelled to fill.  
“Cid, how’s Shera doing?” You asked the pilot. He would never admit it, but you noticed a little glimmer in his eye at the mention of her name. Was that what Tifa meant when you had been talking before?  
“Yeah she’s ok. Keeping out of trouble, I hope. Damn woman works too hard sometimes.” Cid answered.   
“How did you guys meet?” You had never had the opportunity to ask and now seemed as good as any.  
“Ah well, she started working for me on the rocket and she’s just stuck around. She’s a pain in my ass but I wouldn’t do without her.” He said with a half-smile  
His smile brought forward one of your own. “What about you girly? You got yourself a man to go back to when all this is over?” You could have sworn his eyes darted to Vincent as he asked this but you chalked it up to your own paranoia.   
“Me? Oh nah, that’s not been my area for a good few years now.” You replied  
“Oh! You got a lady to go back to then?” Cid corrected himself  
You realized how your answer must have been misinterpreted. “No, that wasn’t what I meant, it just I haven’t had the best of luck romantically”   
“Ah, so have you never…?” Cid asked awkwardly.   
You could sense Vincent shift uncomfortably in his seat. You decided it was time this conversation as ended “I was in a relationship a few years ago, but it didn’t end very well.”   
Cid scratched the back of his head awkwardly. As if timed perfectly, the waitress came to the table with the three teas. The three of you drank your teas in relative silence. Cid started reading the paper that had been on the table and you sipped your tea and exchanged a few glances with Vincent that you were hoping didn’t cause a blush on your cheeks.  
By the time you all finished your tea, it was time for you to meet the others again. Everyone was already there by the time you got back.   
“Right, now that everyone is here, we need to talk about the inn. Following Barratts list of requirements for an inn, there is only one that meets what we need.” Tifa explains  
“Yeah its some Christian place and they are hella picky about who they let stay so we’ve taken the liberty of splitting everyone into groups and giving you all back stories, so get those acting skills warmed up!” Yuffie added with a cheeky grin  
Tifa then went on to let everyone know the plan. “Ok, so Barratt, youre with Cait Sith and Red. You’re an animal lover who is in town to visit his mother who has an allergy to dog hair, hence why you’re at the inn.”   
“Right! C’mon, lets go check in.” Barratt said before he left for the inn with Red and Cait Sith.  
“Next is Cloud. You’re paired with Cid. You two are brothers who are travelling the world together.”   
Cloud nodded and the pair made their way to the inn.  
“Now Aerith and Yuffie, you’re with me. Aerith and I are school friends and Yuffie, you’re my little sister.”  
The two girls smiled “Sounds good to me” Aerith said and she and Yuffie left for the inn.   
You and Vincent were left standing there like the last kids to be picked for teams. Tifa looked at you both. “Ok guys, so you two will have to stay together and you’ll have to pretend to be married. No unmarried couples allowed so try to make it realistic. Sorry to put this on you guys, its just with the whole Cloud thing, it made room allocation a bit tricky. I would have had (Y/N) in with the rest of the girls but the biggest room they had was 3 beds.”  
With that your friend ran to catch up with Aerith and Yuffie. You were frozen in place for a moment, not knowing how to feel about the whole situation. The feeling of your hand being held up shook you from your thoughts. You looked down to see Vincent working his glove onto your hand. “What are you doing?” You asked  
“If we’re supposed to be married, they might wonder why you don’t have a ring.” His eyes focused back on your hand. “Just try and ignore that I’m putting a right hand glove on your left.”


	4. For the church

You could feel the tips of your ears burning with a blush as you made your way to the inn. As you approached the front door Vincent held it open and guided you in, placing his hand on the small of your back. His hand felt slightly unsteady, but you couldn’t tell if the barely there tremor was from his hand or you. You assumed it was you considering the thumping this slight gesture caused in your chest.   
This wasn’t the time to let your emotions come through. You had to be convincing otherwise you might not have a room for the night. You smiled at Vincent and thanked him. You both approached the front desk. You assumed the others had all got their rooms ok as they were nowhere to be seen.   
“Can I help you?” The man at the desk questioned. He looked to be in his 40’s, clean cut and with a stern face.   
“Ah yes, my wife and I would like to book a room for the night.” Vincent said with a large smile. It looked so foreign on his lips that seldom deviated from their natural straightness. Even though you knew it wasn’t genuine you couldn’t help but smile too. Your thoughts were disrupted when Vincent placed his hand back to the bottom of your back. His hand landed slightly lower than he intended. He expected to feel the toned muscles of your back beneath his hand, but instead his touch was met with the softness of your bottom. He quickly corrected the positioning without showing any indicator of this blunder on his face. The feeling of his hand sweeping up from your bottom to your back, even thought brief, caused a tingle in your lower belly.   
The man behind the counter took a moment to look at the two of you. His stern face softened, and a large smile spread across his features. “Oh, young love! I remember that look! How long have you been married?”   
“4 months” You replied. You don’t know whether you were just acting the part or acting on an urge but as you said this you placed you hand flush to Vincent’s chest.   
“Oh, how lovely, so I take it you are honeymooning?” the man asked  
“Yes, taking the opportunity to see the world before we have a little one running around” Vincent said continuing his overly happy charade.  
“So lovely to see love celebrated in marriage. You two are in luck, we’ve got one more room available tonight. We’ve had quite the rush this afternoon.” The man turned around to retrieve the last key from the wall behind him. “Oh before I give this to you I must let you know that this is a weapon free hotel, we have a safe out back so you can check any weapons in.”   
You could see the slightest hint of annoyance threaten to crack through Vincent’s mask until he snaps back into his role. “Of course.” He agreed.  
The two of you them proceeded to remove all your weapons and place them on the counter. The mans brows lifted in shock at the number of items. “Well I guess you can never be too safe when traveling.” As the man gathered the items for safe storage, he spotted Vincent’s gauntlet. “I’m going to need the gold glove too sir”   
“I’m afraid it is a prosthesis.” Vincent had hoped that his response would not evoke further questions. He was wrong.  
“Oh dear! What happened?” The man asked with a hint of concern.  
“I was attacked…by a beast…when…I was on my way to…” Vincent was struggling to think on his feet. So, you decided to help him out.   
“It’s a very sensitive subject, he was part of a trip to Midgar with the church.” You lean in closer to the man and whisper, “only survivor” The man face was full of pity and Vincent too this as an opportunity to allow his face to return to it’s naturally serious expression. The man starts to thank Vincent for his dedication to the church and hands you the keys to your room. You smile your thanks to the man and both make your way up the stairs.  
Once you were both safely in your room Vincent turns to you with a quirked brow “The church?”  
“Well it worked didn’t it? It’s not like you were coming out with anything” You said with a laugh.   
Vincent lets out a small chuckle “I suppose you are right” He turns to the bed; it is a large bed that takes up most of the room. You know he is going to try and let you take the bed, but he is trying to work out where he could stay.  
You interrupt his thoughts “At least the bed is big enough for us both to have our own space.” You didn’t want to go through the whole back and forth about the sleeping arrangement. Vincent knew that you wouldn’t be convinced that he could fit comfortable in the small space between the bed and wall to just nodded at your statement.   
You put your bag on the bed and began to unpack your night clothes and your clothes for the next day. You go to open what you think is a wardrobe but learn that it is an en-suite bathroom. It was a simple room with an over the bath shower, toilet and sink but the sight of a bath was definitely a welcome one.   
As there was no wardrobe you opted to place your clothes on the small desk in the corner of the room. You looked up to see Vincent unbuckling his cape. You unintentionally stopped breathing as you watched his ungloved fingers worked the buckles one at a time. You notice that he is looking directly at you so you try and change and draw attention away from your gawking.   
“I never realised it was a prosthesis.” You said nodding towards his gauntlet. He was folding his cape as he answered, “It isn’t” He placed his cape next to your clothes on the table. After he answered he was concerned that he had come across as blunt so decided to explain further. “My hand has some unsightly burns, so I prefer to keep it on all the time, except to wash of course.”  
You mentally scolded yourself for the amount your mind focused on the last part of his sentence. “You shouldn’t feel that you need to hide your hand. It doesn’t seem like the most comfortable, but if you feel more comfortable with it on I get it.” You looked up at him and smiled. You then started to remove the glove he had loaned you. Once it was off you lifted it. “Thank you for this.” And you placed it in his hand. You were close together now and you felt the air become heavy. You couldn’t help but look at his neck. His skin was so pale and looked so smooth. His defined adams apple stretching the skin of his throat.   
Vincent’s voice broke your focus “If you would like to use the bathroom first. I’m going to get some water from the vending machine downstairs. If there anything you would like?”  
You blinked as you tried to focus on what he had just said. After a short moment it had registered “Right, yes, ok umm water would be great. Thank you.” You smiled even though you wanted the floor to swallow you up. He must have noticed you staring. Just play it cool.


	5. A rose

Vincent cleared his throat and with a slight nod left the room. It’s fine, you told yourself. I can play it off as being tired. With that you decided to have a bath and clear your head. You walked into the bathroom and turned on the taps. The bath quickly filled and you rummaged in you back to retrieve one of the soaps you had bought yesterday.   
\----  
As Vincent walked to the vending machine in the lobby area of the inn he noticed a stall just outside the inn through the open doors. As we walked closer to the door he noticed that it was a flower stall. The flowers were beautiful and fresh and his eyes were drawn to the vibrant red roses, kept in a large black bucket of water. This reminded him of the time Aerith had been asking everyone what their favourite flowers were. He recalled that you had said red roses but you never liked to buy them for yourself.   
Vincent continued his journey to the vending machine. He punched in the code to buy a bottle of water and slid exact gil into the slot. As the first bottle of water was being released, the machine made a clunking noise and a second bottle fell. Vincent retrieved the bottles and pocketed the gil he was intending to use to buy the second bottle.   
As he was about the walk back up the stairs, he decided to go and take another look at the flowers outside. The smell of the flowers was pleasant as he approached the stall. He looked at the roses. They looked like velvet and the droplets of water on their petals only served to enhance their beauty. “Thinking of getting a rose for your love?” The young owner of the stall asked Vincent with a grin.   
“Oh, um how much are the roses?” Whilst this seemed like a natural question someone may ask, Vincent felt as if the words tumbled out of his mouth.  
\-----  
You got into the tub and savoured the sensation of the warm water soothing your muscles. You didn’t want to stay in the bath too long, in case Vincent had come back and was waiting to use the bathroom, so you made quick work of washing yourself. Once you were done, you stepped out of the bath and wrapped yourself in a towel. Once you dried off you changed into your night clothes which comprised of a long-sleeved navy-blue V-neck top and matching shorts.   
The material of your pyjamas was thin and fairly tight on your skin so you decided to put your bra back on for the sake of your own modesty. You would take it off once your were under the blankets and out of sight.   
Once you were dressed you went back into the bed room. You hadn’t heard anyone come in, so assumed Vincent was still out. You jumped as your saw Aerith sitting on the bed. “Sorry to scare you.” She said sweetly.  
“I wanted to come talk to you and the door was unlocked.” She explained  
“No worries, everything ok?” You always enjoyed the flower girls company, but you had to admit, you were shocked that she has sought you out specifically to talk to.  
“Yeah, everything’s fine. I just wanted to talk to you about Tifa. I know you guys are really close, so could you make sure she doesn’t feel like she needs to tip toe around me in terms of Cloud?” You didn’t really know what to say in response to this but Aerith continued “I just really don’t want to come between those two, and I know she would have liked to share a room with him. Plus it means you could have stayed with us. Where is Vincent by the way?”  
You had always thought Aerith to be kind, but her selflessness made you admire her even more. You sat down next to her on the bed “That’s really sweet of you, I’ll have a word with her when I get a chance. And Vincent just popped downstairs to get some water. I bet that guy at the front desk is chewing his ear off. I may have told him that Vincent goes on missions with the church” You both started laugh at this.  
As you two were laughing Vincent walked in. “Talk of the devil.” You said. He looked at you both with a quirked eyebrow. “I was just saying to Aerith that you have been gone a while, and that the guy at the front desk was probably talking to you about your church missions.”  
Before Vincent could respond Aerith spotted the rose tucked under his arm. “Oh what a beautiful rose! Did you-“  
“The man at the desk gave it to me.” Vincent cut Aerith off mid-sentence. Vincent then realised he needed to add more detail to his story. “He had a few and gave me one to give to ‘Mrs Valentine’” He extended the rose to you, looking at the floor the entire time. You gently took the rose. “Well that’s a lovely surprise. Even if it was given under false pretence, I’ll never turn down a beautiful rose.” You couldn’t help but smile as you looked at the deep red petals. You were so busy looking at the flower that you didn’t notice the glance exchanged between Vincent and Aerith.   
Aerith had remembered that you liked roses, and she knew that about the flower stall outside. “Well I had best be getting back to my room. Last thing we need is to arouse suspicion.” She looked directly at Vincent with that last word. She said her goodnights and made her way back to her room.  
“I had best put this in some water.” You said as you stood. Vincent felt his throat go dry at the sight of your toned legs. They were normally hidden by heavy trousers, Vincent both welcomed and cursed the change in your attire. You returned from the bathroom with a small cup of water, put the rose in it and placed it on the bedside tabled.   
You realised that Vincent hadn’t moved. “Everything ok?” You asked. He slightly shook his head “Yes, I’m going to have a shower.” With that he rushed into the bathroom. You were worried that he was acting strange because of you staring at him before he left but decided to shrug it off. ‘If I dwell on it, it will only make more awkward’ you told yourself. You took the time Vincent was in the bathroom to get comfortable in bed, removing your bra and tucking it away before retrieving you’re a book to read in bed.   
You hadn’t read half a page before you heard the click of the bathroom door. “Nice sho…” your words trailed of as you looked up from your book. Vincent was standing there in nothing but a towel and his golden gauntlet. His long black hair clinging to his skin. His muscles were tight and defined. A large Y shaped scar covered his torso and he had an array of other scars covering his flesh. His scars didn’t take away from the beauty of his ivory skin.   
“I forgot my..” Vincent mumbled as he picked up his clothes. You could just about shift your focus to his face. You noticed a scar stretching across his forehead. It was only when Vincent returned to the bathroom that you felt your face heat up.


	6. Better than you could imagine

You tried to focus on the words on the page in front of you, determined to at least seem unphased by what had just happened. Vincent came back into the room, he was wearing his usual red bandanna again, his gauntlet with long lack pyjama bottoms and a black long sleeve tshirt. He awkwardly rounded the bed and sat down. While he was never the most carefree man, he was usually somewhat relaxed around you. As much as you were also awkward, he was your friend and you wanted him to be at ease. You placed your book down beside the bed and turned to him “You ok?” You asked. He gave you a slight nod in response. “Not very convincing.” you gave him a sweet smile and searched his face for any sign of a reaction, but he was stoic.   
You shifted your body so that you were completely facing him “Listen, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. You’re a dear friend to me Vincent.” You gently placed your hand on his forearm. You felt his muscles tense at your touch, but you were adamant to make your point so kept your hand there.   
His brows furrowed and he finally looked into your eyes. “Why are you apologising? It was my mistake that caused you to have to see that.” He replied.  
You couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle at his dramatic response. “Vince, it was your chest, you were hardly trench coat flashing me.” You called him Vince to make sure he knew you were being lighthearted.   
“I mean the marks. I know how unsightly they are.”  
“What? You’ve been through so much, of course some mark will be left, but never think for one second that that takes anything away from you, and never apologise to anyone for what you look like. You are worth so much more than that.” You looked at him, not breaking eye contact until he at least gave you a nod that he had understood. “Now stop being awkward. Besides, you did say I was calming” You have him a smile as he visibly relaxed. “Sometimes” he added, a small smirk playing on his lips.   
As quickly as he relaxed his expression changed to one of confusion. “You seemed when I said about the scars. What were you apologising for if it wasn’t your reaction to them?”  
You didn’t know how to answer this. You couldn’t just outright say it because you thought he looked like marble statue carved by the angels in accordance to your exact definition of beauty. But you needed to answer him. “Oh, umm just my general reaction to you in that umm situation.” He could interpret that as you being uncomfortable or aroused, but that was up to him. He seemed to be contemplating your answer when you decided to change the subject.   
“Oh, I meant to ask you. This morning when you said I was calming. You also said amusing and you were about to saying something else, but you never finished. What was it?”  
“Was I going to say something else?” He said nonchalantly   
“You know you were!” You said as you sat up onto your knees with outrage. You had clearly forgotten that you had taken your bra off and when you saw Vincent briefly glance at your chest before quickly looking away you made sure hold casually old one of the pillows on your lap to shield yourself from any further embarrassment. You could have sworn that you saw the faintest of blushes on Vincent’s cheeks, but it was gone before your could be sure.   
“Hmm well I can’t remember.” You knew he was messing with you, so you just raised an eyebrow at him. “Well, I suppose I would have said that as well as calming and amusing that I also find your presence” He had shifted so you were face to face “to sometimes be frustrating.” You hadn’t noticed how close his face had gotten and you knew his vague answer was in retaliation to your previous comment. “Touché Mr Valentine”. You gazed into his red eyes for what felt like an eternity before the gap between you finally closed.   
You had fantasied about this often, but it was better than you could have imagined. His hand gently tilted your face up to his. His lips were perfectly soft, and your mouths moved together as if they been made for this purpose alone. His hand moved to cup the side of your face as you parted your lips to allow him to deepen the kiss. You buried your hands in his hair gently tugging on the soft strands. Vincent’s kisses moved from your lips to your jawline. He began to trail kissed down towards your neck. You let out a small moan “Vincent, wait.” He stopped and moved so your foreheads were pressed together, and his thumb was gently rubbing your cheek. He was waiting for you to speak. “I need to take this slow, and if you kiss my neck, I don’t think I’ll be able to.”   
Vincent looked deep into your eyes, hand still on your cheek, and smiled “We can take as long as you need” He kissed your lips again and you two settled down into bed for the night.


	7. Just a kiss?

You didn’t know what to do with yourself. You desperately wanted to be held by him, but you remembered that you were the one who asked to take it slow. You laid there, arms straight by your sides. Your mind was racing. You knew what that kiss meant to you, but he was so hard to read. He had obviously wanted to kiss you too, and you could feel the desire in the way his lips danced over your skin. But you couldn’t ignore how he had been pining over his lost love Lucrecia. You would do anything to help him heal, but your own heart couldn’t take simply being a physical outlet. But at the same time, it was just a kiss.   
Vincent’s body language was mirroring your own. His blood had finally stopped being concentrated in his pyjama bottoms, but his hear was still fluttering from your kiss. He could still taste you on his lips. He couldn’t remember ever feeling this way after a kiss. It had been well over 30 years since he had kissed someone though. He could sense there was a lot going through your mind. He wanted nothing more than to pull you close to him, but he wanted to respect your wishes of taking it slow. He carefully moved his hand to cover yours.   
This simple gesture brought you back to reality from your spiralling thoughts. You interlaced your fingers with his and he soothed the back of your hand with his thumb. It was only then that you realised how tired you were, and sleep came quickly.  
You woke up early the next morning. The sun had only begun to rise. You noticed that you had started cuddling Vincent's arm at some point in the night. You looked at his face. He was still asleep. He was completely still other that the faintest raise and fall of his chest as he breathed. Because of the slight grey hue of his skin, it would be easy to mistake him for dead, but the warmth of his body heat was proof that he wasn’t. You gently released his arm, trying your best to not wake him, but his eyelids fluttered open.   
“Good morning” You said as he was blinking to adjust his eyes. Once his eyes focused he looked at you, he had a heartwarming smile on his face. You felt your heart skip a beat. “Good morning” he replied. You suddenly became very conscious of the fact that you were still holding his hand tightly. You released his hand and sat up in bed with a stretch. He sat up too. He turned your head to his with his hand and gently kissed you. You could feel that he was holding back in his kiss, wanting to respect your wishes to take things slow. When the kiss finally broke off you smiled and said “Well last night took an unexpected turn.” You smiled. Vincent hummed in agreement. Just as Vincent opened his mouth to speak, the phone that you had given to Vincent not long after he joined you started ringing. Vincent retrieved it from the bedside table. “It’s Cid” He said to you before flipping the phone open and lifting it to his ear.   
“Vince, when you’re up and ready we’re gunna meet same place as yesterday.”  
“Ok” Vincent answered simply before folding the phone shut. “I take it you heard him?”  
“I think I would have even without the phone” You joked, earning a small chuckle from Vincent. You both decided that you should get read for the day. You both got ready quickly. Vincent was waiting for you by the door as you packed away your toothbrush. He moved his hand to open the door but you briefly stopped him. You cupped his face in your hands and pressed your lips to his. “I don’t know when I’ll get a chance to do that again.” You explained   
“It won’t be too long.” He said as he placed a kiss on your forehead and you both left the room.  
You felt as though you were walking on air as you made your way to the meeting point in town. When you got there Cid greeted you both with a nod. “Mornin’, (y/n) where are the other ladies?” Cid asked.   
“I’m guessing still getting ready.” You answered, confused as to why he thought you would know.   
“Wait, weren’t you staying them ‘em?” He always got antsy when he had to wait for people, so he wasn’t satisfied with your answer.  
“No, I was rooming with Vincent.” You said very matter of factly, making sure to not make it seem like a big deal to you.  
Cid took a moment to look between you and Vincent. “Oh, well s**t, if I knew that I would have asked you to swap (Y/N). Vince sleeps like the dead. Clouds a f****’n sleep talker! Didn’t get a wink!” The pilot huffed. You laughed at his outburst “Well I’m glad you didn’t know, then.”  
Not long after the rest of the group was there. You could sense that Tifa was itching to talk to you about last night, but she knew to not say anything until you could speak in private.   
Meanwhile, Cid stood next to Vincent. “You look rested” he said with a smirk. Vincent raised an eyebrow and looked at Cid from the side of his eye. Cid continued “You sleep well?”   
“Highwind.” Vincent said warningly. Cid didn’t say anything else, but the smirk never left his face.


	8. En route

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~Hey, sorry for the delay in uploading. Been really busy in work and I didn't want to rush this. Also apologies for all the typos in previous chapters! Hopefully I've caught them all in this one.~

When you were all ready, you made your way to the large ship waiting in the dock. Barret had a contact in Nibelheim that had supposedly had some important intel, so you were making your way there. When you got to the dock you saw what you assumed to be the ship’s captain sitting cross legged on the floor with his face in his hands. You usually were able to sneak onto these large ships with no hassle, but with the captain sitting right near the foot bridge, that wasn’t going to work.   
“He looks destressed. Let me go and speak to him” you said to the others. Cloud was about to protest but you had already made your way over to the man.   
“Are you ok?” you asked the man as you crouched in front of him.  
He lifted his head. Is round face was red and he looked panicked. “Listen girly, I’m not in the mood to talk to the likes of you. I’ve got to get a ship load of cargo to the Costa del Sol and a busted engine. I’m gunna lose my job!”  
Bingo.  
You wanted to yell at the man for calling you ‘girly’ but you realised that this was your opening to get yourself and your friends onto the ship. You had Cid on your team, and you weren’t too bad yourself when it came to inventing equipment and fixing busted engines. “Well, how about you let me and my friend over there take a look?” You said pointing over to Cid “You’ll have to give us a free ride over though.”   
The man scoffed “Yeah like you’d be able to do anything!” You stood upright with your hands on your hips “Well it’s your job on the line.” You turned to walk away mentally counting down 3…2…”Wait!” the man piped up. You turned back to him. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt if you had a look” The man said reluctantly. You nodded and walked back to group.  
“C’mon Cid. If we fix the engine, he’ll take us” You said “Nice work (Y/N)” Yuffie chimed. You and Cid made your way to the engine room. There was water all over the floor, the engine had been leaking. Upon further inspection 2 of the metal panels of the engine were slightly separated so Cid started working to patch it up. While he was doing that you started mopping up the floor. “Hey (Y/N)” Cid said suddenly. You looked up at him. “What do you think of Vincent?” he said casually. You were a bit taken aback by this.  
“Oh, well I think he’s a good man that has gone through a lot.” You made sure to keep it as impersonal to you as possible. “Why do you ask?”  
“Ah, no reason.” He finished tightening the bolt and patted the side of the tank “Well she outta last the journey now.” You were still confused by his questioning but thought to yourself that he must be trying to work Vincent out himself. That’s got to be it, right?  
You both made your way up to the deck were the others were waiting with the captain. “She’s good to go! She’ll last the journey at least” Cid told the captain.  
The man beamed a smile of relief. “Oh thank you! Thank you! Please make yourselves comfortable! We have a canteen if you’re hungry. We leave at once!” and with that the man hurried away.  
“Well damn! I could go for some food!” Barret announced and the rest of you nodded in agreement and the group made their way below deck. You were at the back of the group and Vincent had found his way by your side. He took the opportunity to place a hand at the small of your back to guide you through the door ahead of him. You felt embarrassed at your body’s reaction to this touch. It reminded you of the previous night when you had been checking into the hotel. This caused you to replay the other events of last night in your head. You felt your nipples harden slightly and your pulse quicken. You knew Vincent wouldn’t be able to notice this, but you still felt embarrassed. Fortunately for you Vincent’s cloak was masking the smirk playing on his lips.  
Whilst pleased at your response. Vincent was also confused by it. He didn’t understand how his deathly appearance could induce anything but disgust or pity from anyone, let alone you. You were one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. The fact that your reaction to him mirrored his to you was fascinating to him. He didn’t feel as though he deserved it. You had no idea of the thoughts going through Vincent’s head as you made your way to the canteen.   
You all sat at a long table and enjoyed a meal together, chatting and laughing. Once you had finished eating everyone remained at the table. Tifa who was sitting next to you nudged you gently “Fancy going for a little walk?” she asked. “Yeah sure.” You said with a smile and followed your friend out of the canteen.  
You decided to walk up to the deck. Tifa was making small talk even though you both knew what she really wanted to talk about. She just didn’t want to be too direct. When you both got to the deck you took a seat on one of the many crates. There was a brief silence between you until Tifa cracked. “Oh my god will you just tell me how it went!?”   
You couldn’t help but laugh at her outburst. “Well, it went well.” You simply said.  
“If you don’t give me details on every conversation, I will get violent” She said with a laugh.  
“Woah now haha, ok. Well I may have seen him in just a towel.” Tifas eyes widened with excited of the news “And, we may have shared a moment.”   
“MOMENT? A MOMENT IN THE TOWEL?!” Tifa all but screamed  
“No, well yes but no. I mainly just stared at him in the towel, making him feel awkward. But when he was dress and we were talking in bed, we may or may not have kissed.” You said with a bright blush on your face, unable to hold in your smile at the memory.   
“OH MY GOD!”  
“Shhhhh Tifa, people are staring!” You tried to quieten your friend.   
“I just was not expecting that. Like I thought he liked you, but he’s so reserved! So, did anything else happen?” She asked with a twinkle in her eyes.  
“Well I think it could have, but I stopped it.” You told her, eyes now on your lap.  
“Oh. But isn’t that what you wanted?” Tifa asked puzzled.  
“Oh trust me, I would ride that man like a chocobo.” You both laughed “Which would be great if I wasn’t in love with the man.”  
Tifa’s face softened and you continued “Yeah, so I told him I need to take it slow. I know he’s still in love with her and I can’t put myself through that.” You were both silent for a moment “So that’s my issue. Taking it slow is all well and good, but I don’t think he would ever feel the same about me as I do him. I don’t know what to do.”   
Tifa put her hand on your shoulder. “I think you should talk to him. Tell him how you feel. Otherwise, he’s going to think you’re rejecting him with no explanation.”   
You exhaled. You knew she was right. You both sat in silence for a moment.   
“Speaking of talking to people, Aerith came to speak to me yesterday.” You looked over at Tifa “She’s worried that you feel you need to hold back with Cloud to spare her feelings.”  
“Oh” was all Tifa said.  
You continued “Yeah, she doesn’t want you to. She wants you to be happy together.”  
“She’s so sweet. That’s what makes it hard. I understand what he sees.” Tifa was looking forward now.  
You looked at her, waiting for her to explain further. “I know her fondness toward him is the familiarity he has to her first love. But, I know Cloud has feelings for her. I feel stuck. I wish I could just ignore it, but…” Tifa trailed off, you could hear the words stick in her throat.   
“I know.” You said as you hugged her. “I think you need to speak to Cloud. We can do this together, if I talk to Vincent, you need to speak to Cloud.” You said with a faint smile.


	9. Reassurance

The journey to the Costa del Sol was an overnight one. You were due to dock at 9am the next day. Cloud had found a large unused storeroom that you could all stay in, so the rest of the day was spent either walking around the ship or sitting chatting in the storeroom. You had been consciously avoiding Vincent. You knew you needed to speak to him but there hadn’t been a good time.  
Coud, Cid, Yuffie and Barrat had settled themselves at a small table to the side of the room to play cards. Yuffies competitive outbursts and Barrat’s laughter filled the room. Vincent was sitting with Red and you were sitting with Tifa and Aerith. You were chatting with the girls when you couldn’t stop yourself from looking over at Vincent. He was listening intently to Red. You couldn’t hear what was being said but you just enjoyed the brief moment of watching Vincent. He was truly beautiful, both physically and as a person.   
Aerith fell asleep soon after the others had finished their card games. “Have you spoken to him?” Tifa asked you in a hushed tone. “No, I haven’t found the right time. Have you spoken to Cloud?” You asked  
Tifa just shook her head. “It would be suspicious to everyone if I went up to Vincent and asked him to speak privately, but you can literally go up to him now and speak to him” You sounded stern, but you knew she needed a push.   
She paused for a moment before nodding, standing up and taking your advice. You must have fallen asleep not long after Tifa and Cloud left because the next thing you can recall is waking up. You must have only slept a couple of hours because everyone else was still fast asleep. Tifa and Cloud had returned.   
You tossed and turned a few times trying to fall back to sleep, but no luck. Your mind was full of Vincent. His eyes, his scent and the feeling of his lips as they made their way to your neck was all you could think about. You sat up and decided to get some fresh air.   
You tip toed out of the room, sure to not wake anyone. You made your way up to the deck. It was quiet, except for the crashing of waves either side on the ship. You hopped up to sit on one of the crates again. Despite the cold breeze making you shiver slightly, you felt relaxed.   
You jumped as you felt a heaviness on your shoulders. You were about to jump up in surprise, but a familiar voice reassured you. “I thought you’d be cold up here.” Vincent rounded the crate “May I?” he asked motioning to the space next to you. “Of course, and thank you.” You said wrapping his cloak around you a little tighter. He nodded and you looked forward again. There were a few moments of heavy silence.   
Strangely, it was Vincent to break the silence “I’m happy to listen if you want to talk about anything. Please don’t feel like you need to hold back your thoughts.”  
You exhaled “I know, and I appreciate it.” You paused for a minute, not knowing how to continue before you spoke up again “I feel like you are always the one listening. You need to let me listen to you.”  
He looked at you. You couldn’t quite read his expression.   
“I want to know what happened with Lucrecia.”   
You knew that Lucrecia was the woman who gave birth to Sephiroth, but you didn’t know what happened between her and Vincent. Part of you wondered if he was Sephiroth’s biological father. Vincent remained expressionless and still. It felt strange to hear her name come from your lips. Had this been what caused you to act so strangely to him today? He knew he had to tell you, he just struggled with it.  
“When I was a young man, I worked for ShinRa. I was what is now known as a Turk. I was assigned a job working as security for Lucrecia. I fell in love with her” You felt your throat tighten. Vincent continued “It’s a very long story, but the short version is that she married another man and fell pregnant. They wanted to experiment on the unborn child, which I was against. I tried to stop her but…my efforts weren’t good enough. I was shot and this…” He waved his hand over his form. “And, Sephiroth was born.”  
You placed your hand on his gauntlet that was placed next to you. He looked down at it with a small smile. “I’m always here to listen. You need to allow yourself to heal, but at the same time I know it can’t be rushed.” You swallowed hard. You knew what you need to say to him, but you didn’t know how. “You need to focus on that. I’ll always be here…as a friend.” You could feel tears threaten to fall, but you held them back.   
Vincent was taken aback by what you had said. You had gotten it wrong. His sadness wasn’t caused by his pining for Lucrecia, it was the guilt he held for not being able to stop her. He understood why you thought how you did. He hadn’t told you how he felt about you, but then again you hadn’t made your feelings clear either. This was a mess that he needed to clear up.  
He got up and stood in front of you. He gently tilted your chin so you were looking up at him. “(Y/n), please don’t misunderstand. I found peace with that rejection many years ago, it is my guilt that haunts me now.” He stroked your cheek. “Please rest assured that my actions towards you are born of more than physical need.”  
You looked up at him. It was as if he had read your mind and told you the exact words you needed to hear. You leaned into his touch, relaxing at his words. “I’m sorry I was avoiding you today.” You said apologetically. “Were you?” He replied with a smirk.  
You smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Yes, I had to because every time I look at you, I just want to do this.” You reached your hand to the back of his neck to pull him down to your height. You pressed your lips to his. You could feel him smile into the kiss as he threaded his hands into your hair. You ran your tongue along his bottom lip. Vincent opened his mouth slightly to deepen the kiss.   
Any worry you had was being wiped from your mind, being replaced by this kiss. It was perfect. The moment wasn’t to last though. You heard a spluttering followed by a loud cough.  
You both stopped kissing, trying to work out what the noise was. You both turned to the source of the noise. You could see Yuffie leaning over the side of the ship. “Motion sickness” You said with a slight laugh. “We should see if she’s alright” You said giving Vincent one last peck on the lips.


	10. Day off

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Sorry for the late update. I fell down the stairs last week and sprained my wrist and with the amount of typing I need to do for work alone, recreational writing was out the window. 
> 
> This is the first time I've ever written anything even remotely smutty. Hope you enjoy!

The rest of the night and morning until you docked was spent looking after Yuffie. By the time you go to the Costa del Sol, you could just about keep your eyes open. Luckily for you, Tifa loved this place and seemed to have convinced Cloud to pencil in a day off from travelling to make the most of passing through here.   
As the day was being taken as a day off everyone made their own plans for the day. “Hey, Y/N.” Tifa said bounding up to you. “Aerith, and I are planning on going to the beach, wanna join?”   
You could barely keep your eyes open. “Actually, I was planning on getting a room and having a nap. I barely slept last night.” Tifa widened her eyes and grinned at you.   
“No Tifa, Yuffie was ill and we stayed with her.” You corrected your friend’s thoughts, shaking your head laughing.   
“Well, how about we go for lunch after your nap?” Tifa leaned in closer and lowered her voice “Then you can tell me all about why you and our gunslinging friend were up anyway.” Her slime lessened as she continued in a more serious tone “Also I need to talk to you about things” You knew she was talking about her conversation with Cloud, so you nodded.  
“Ok, I’ll call you when I get up. See you later” You gave your friend a brief hug before making your way to find an inn to rest up in.   
You hadn’t seen Vincent since you left the ship but you were too sleep deprived to think on it for too long.   
You booked yourself into the first inn you found that had available rooms. You paid for your stay at the small reception desk and made your way upstairs. It was a small inn that had about 3 rooms. You couldn’t hear anyone walking about so assumed that any other guests were out and about. It was 10am after all!   
You unlocked your room and settled down. Not wanting to get fully ready for bed you decided to rid yourself of your heavy boots and trousers and rest on top of the blankets of your larger than expected bed. The Costa del Sol heat was enough to keep you warm as your quickly fell asleep.  
Your dreams mirrored the only thing that had been on your mind the last few weeks. Vincent. You dreamt of his kisses, the way his hand would caress your face, gently moving down your chest. Teasing touches ghosting over your abdomen. Trailing further down-  
You woke up suddenly, flustered with a bright blush covering your cheeks. You glanced over to the small clock that was on the bed side table. 12:00pm. You tired to calm your thoughts. You should call Tifa to meet for lunch. Your mind was a blur, only able to think about how much your wanted Vincent. How much you wanted that dream to become reality.   
You hadn’t had a room to yourself in well over a month. Where you would have normally been able to work through any ‘frustrations’ on your own, you hadn’t been able to. And now with having memories of actual passionate physical contact with the person responsible for your frustrations, it was near enough driving you mad.   
You looked at the clock again, deciding you had time and rationalizing that you needed a clear head, you let your mind and hand wander.   
You thought back to when you had seen Vincent in just a towel. The taught muscles covered with pale skin. His jawline, prominent and strong and he turned his face from you. You pushed your hand under your underwear and dipped a finger between your folds. You were already soaking just at the thought of Vincent. Your gently circled your clit with your index and middle finger. Imagining how it would feel if it were Vincents fingers, or even better, lips and tongue doing this. This thought made you release a loud moan from your lips. Your fingers picked up the pace, causing you to moan Vincent’s name like a prayer. Thoughts of him holding you in is strong arms as he ravaged your body bringing you closer and closer to release. Your climax hit you hard.  
\------  
Vincent had left the group as soon as it was decided that they would be taking a day off. He couldn’t help but wonder how things would have played out had the young ninja’s motion sickness not interrupted the two of you. He felt embarrassment and guilt at where he had hoped it would go. He felt guilty that the whole time you had both been caring for Yuffie, all he was thinking about was taking you. He knew you wanted to take it slow, and he would never want to make you feel forced into anything.   
Normally he wouldn’t have left the group without at least telling you where he was going, but he needed to be alone. He wanted to spend time with you today, but he needed to release himself of some of this torture building up.  
He checked into an inn and all but ran up the stairs. His quickly rid himself of this cloak. His need was painful has it strained against his trousers. He unbuckled them and pushed them down, just low enough to release his member. He felt ridiculous at his actions but didn’t stop. He stroked his long, hard erection, grunts and deep moans filling the room. He reached his climax quickly, a loud moan was about to fall from his lips but he quickly stifled it, hearing a pair of footsteps making their way up the stairs just outside his room.   
Once he was certain whoever just came up the stairs was securely in their own room he moved to clean up. Once he was cleaned up he laid down on the bed. He laid there in silence, thinking about how best to spend the day with you. How could he find an excuse to spend some time alone with you but not draw the attention of the rest of the group. He spent longer than he had realised, thinking of different things you two could do to spend some quality time together. He had finally settled on the idea of asking you to dinner. He was running over all the details from how to ask you to where to go.  
His thoughts stilled when he thought he heard something. He couldn’t hear anything else so brushed it off. Then he heard it again. Was someone…moaning? He felt bad that his heightened hearing was unintentionally invading the privacy of the person in the room next to him. He would have been mortified if he thought anyone had heard him earlier, so he tried is best to not listen in.   
He went back to his mental planning until- “Vincent!” he heard the person moan. Then again, and again. His trousers became painfully tight once again as he recognized the voice to be you.   
He was stunned for a moment, you were just on the other side of the wall, pleasuring yourself to thought of him. He once again released himself from his pants. He remained as silent as possible to focus on your moans. He could hear your moans become more desperate and his pace increased. He released his seed into his hand as he heard your all but scream his name one last time.


	11. Lunch with Tifa

After you had come down from your high, you decided to take a quick shower and freshen up. Once you were clean and redressed you felt like a new woman. You rummaged in your pocket to get your phone. You dialed Tifas number.   
“Hey sleepy head, you feeling better now?” She answered the phone cheerfully.  
“Much!” You couldn’t help but laugh to yourself. Thankfully, she didn’t know just how much better you were feeling.   
“Good! Well I’ve just found a cute little café near on the west side of the beach.”  
“Fab, I’ll meet you there.” You replied  
“Ok, I’m sat outside so you’ll know which one I mean. I’ll order you a coffee. See you soon!” With that she hung up.  
You decided to text Vincent. You hadn’t heard from him all morning.  
Hey, I didn’t see you leave the group earlier. Hope you’re enjoying your day off 😊 x  
You wanted him to know you were thinking of him but didn’t want to pressure him into spending time with you if he wanted to be alone. Little did you know he knew exactly how much you had been thinking of him.  
Vincent, in the room next door looked at his phone with a smile. He didn’t usually like having to keep a phone on him but on this occasion, he was glad for it. He waited until he heard you leave your room and go down the stairs before replying.   
I went to rest. Would you accompany me to dinner tonight?  
He used to term rest loosely. His guilt over his previous actions had subsided knowing that you were both in the same mind frame. Now he was feeling guilty for secretly joining you. This new guilt was different though. He felt something in himself that he hadn’t felt since his days as a young Turk. He felt mischievous.   
You were on your way to meet Tifa when your phone buzzed with Vincent’s reply. You smiled broadly at the idea of going for dinner with Vincent  
I would love to. Just tell me when and where x  
Vincent didn’t have a particular place in mind so he would have to think of somewhere.   
Meet me by the bridge. 5:30pm.  
You laughed at how blunt his texts always were. You knew he wasn’t a fan of texting.  
See you then x  
Tifa saw you texting as you were walking. You were smiling ear to ear.   
“Someone’s in a good mood” She said as you walked up the table she was at. “There’s only one person who can get you to smile like that, so I’m assuming you’ve talked things out?”   
You laughed “We did, still taking things slow, but I think I’m just going to let myself enjoy things as they are. He’s let me know that it’s more than just physical. That’s all need at the moment.”   
Tifa smiled at you “I’m guessing you still want to keep things hush with the others?”  
You sipped your coffee “Yeah, there’s no need for them to know. It will just put pressure on Vincent that he doesn’t need.” You leaned back in your seat “Enough about that, you need to tell me what happened with Cloud.”  
“Well, as you know, I spoke to him. I said everything I was thinking and feeling and if I’m honest, I’m no better for it.” She sighed and continued “I mean, he listened and told me he cared about me, but I’m still in the dark about how he feel about Aerith.”   
“Just looking at this from his point of view, I don’t think he didn’t clarify because he wants to keep things from you. I think he doesn’t know. It’s up to you whether you wait for him to work it out. He’s a good guy, he wouldn’t cause you this upset on purpose.” You placed your hand on Tifa’s to comfort her. “How did you leave things?”  
“As we normally do.” Tifa replied looking embarrassed. Tifa laughed “You know, I’m going to take a leaf out of your book. I’m just going to enjoy what it is and not force anything else. I’ll just see how it goes.”   
The two of you chatted as you finished your lunches.   
“Have you got any plans to see Vincent later?” Tifa asked as you got ready to leave the café.  
“I do as it goes. He’s asked me to go for dinner with him.” You couldn’t help but smile as you relplied. “Speaking of which, I need your help. I don’t know what to wear.”  
“Well lets go get you an outfit!” Tifa said excitedly linking her arm in yours.   
The two of you spent the next few hours going in and out of shops to find the right outfit, not too fancy but more put together than your usual combat gear.   
When you were happy with your purchase you made your way back to your hotel room to get ready. You had butterflies in your stomach the whole time. You put on the dress that you had bought. It was a simple black dress with spaghetti straps. It stopped mid-thigh and you pair it with a pair of black heels.   
You smoothed out the dress, happy with the way it hugged your curves. You looked at the time. 5:20pm. You picked up your bag and made your way to meet Vincent.


	12. The date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided to add a little more back story to the reader.  
> I'm planning to extend the story past where I had already planned it to finish.   
> Thank you all so much for the lovely comments and feedback. It's been really motivating xx

Vincent had made sure to leave his room early to avoid running into you at the inn. He was sat on a bench near the bridge waiting for you. As he saw approach his breath caught in his throat. His previous plans of being cool and collected being challenged.   
He stood to greet you, but the words had left him. You were feeling the same. He was still wearing his gauntlet and head band, but his usual leather suit and red cape were replaced with a more casual pair of black jeans and a black shirt. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. Whilst most guys your age wouldn’t normally tuck in shirts to their jeans, the fact that Vincent’s was, served as a subtle reminder of his true age.   
This made you realise that even though the man in front of you was about 30 years older than you, he never made you feel patronized. That was just one of the things you loved about him.   
You both stood in silence in front of each other for a moment before you broke the silence.   
“You’re looking very handsome.” You said shyly. It wasn’t like you to be shy around him, but the fact you were on a date filled you with anxiety.   
Vincent took another moment to compose himself before he replied, “So do you – I mean beautiful…you look beautiful.” In this moment he found himself reverting back to his former self, but rather than being the smooth talking Turk he was in his early 20’s, he was the fumbling 26 year old who had fallen in love with the beautiful scientist.   
He had always considered Lucrecia to be the only woman to make him fall over his words as though his tongue were not his own. But here he was, a lifetime later, feeling that same way with another.   
You don’t really know how long you both just stood looking at each other. It was you who broke the silence yet again “So, where are we going?” you said, moving to Vincent’s side.   
“I saw a small Italian restaurant not far from here.” He replied in his usual cool tone  
“Sounds lovely”  
You made your way to the small restaurant in a comfortable silence. The restaurant was beautiful.   
“Good evening, do you have a reservation” a petit woman asked you both as you walked in.  
You were about to say no when Vincent replied “Yes, under the name Valentine”  
You were guided a small table at the back, there was a large window that had a wonderful view of the beach. Vincent pull your chair out for you. You thanked him and took a seat.  
Once he had taken his seat opposite you, you both looked at the menus in front of you. For the first time, it was Vincent who broke the silence.   
He leaned forward slightly “Is everything ok? You’re very quiet.” His confidence was starting to come back to him. He knew you were feeling nervous being with him in such a romantic setting.   
You looked up at him with a smile “I’m fine, more than fine.” You paused for a second before continuing “This is a date, right? I mean it’s absolutely fine if it’s not, I just want to make sure we’re on the same page.” You awkwardly blurted out and nervously brought your hands to your chin.   
Vincent let out a low chuckle “I would like for this to be a date. And don’t worry, I believe we are very much on the same page.” He smirked a little and that last bit, recalling this morning.   
You visibly relaxed at his words, even though his smirk raised a question in your mind, you decided to ignore it. You both ordered your meals and were chatting as you were eating. You decided to take the opportunity to learn as much about the man in front of you as possible.  
“Can I ask you a personal question?” You asked  
“Of course, what would you like to know.” His response showed you just how close you had become to Vincent. When you first met in that basement, you would never have thought he would be willing to let you know personal details about himself.   
“What was your life like growing up?”   
He paused briefly in thought. He didn’t know what he thought you were going to ask, but he wasn’t expecting that. “Well it was fairly ordinary, other than that my father was working away a lot. He was a scientist and was very much dedicated to his job. So for the most part it was just my mother and I. After my father passed away, I decided to start working for ShinRa. I think part of me felt closer to him by working for the same company.” His voice trailed off a little at the end, and you sensed he didn’t want to talk about his father any further. Accepting that, that was a conversation for another time, you changed the subject.  
“So, what were you like as a young man? I bet you broke a few hearts.” You said with a smile  
Vincent let out a laugh “Ah I don’t know about that” he said shaking his head still laughing.  
“Nah, you don’t become this smooth without dating around a bit.” You looked at him with an eyebrow raised and smile on your face.   
Vincent cleared his throat and looked down “Dating isn’t the word I would use.”  
Your eyes went wide with shock and you both started laughing. “Well bloody hell. Mr Valentine, you are full of surprises.”   
“Ah that was a very long time ago. And what about you? You rarely speak of your life before meeting Cloud and the others.”  
You hadn’t realised how much you had unintentionally kept from them all.   
“Oh, well like you, I grew up mainly with my mother. And then my life went to shit when I got involved with ShrinRa. Cloud and Tifa found me in one of the labs when they went to find Aerith.”  
Vincent didn’t say anything but reached his hand over to rest upon yours. He knew better than anyone the hell of being kept in a ShinRa lab. He wanted to know how you found yourself in that situation, but he took the same approach you had earlier and didn’t want to force you.  
You really didn’t want your lovely evening to end with you talking about such negative things and you knew he understood.   
You shifted in you seat, “but back to our previous conversation, if you wouldn’t say dating, what would you say.” Your smile returned  
Vincent chuckled again “This is making me seem a lost worse than I actually was.” He said with a shake of his head.   
“Well enlighten me” You said becoming aware of just how shamelessly you were flirting with him.   
He raised an eyebrow at you. “Well, let me start off by reminding you of our conversation last night.” He said defensively.   
“Vincent, I’m not going to judge you. I just want to know you.” You said reassuringly “Maybe one day I’ll tell you some stories of my tragic dating history. But for now, continue.”  
He gave you a genuine smile “Ok, so the best way for me to put it is that back then instead of dates I would have ‘encounters’.” He could see you were loving seeing him embarrassed. Little did you know he had something up his sleeve to turn it on you.


	13. The taste of him

“Right, so what was your best pick up line?” you said, leaning forward slightly waiting to hear more. The way you leaned forward gave Vincent a good view of your ample cleavage. He felt his throat go dry but he was adamant to regain control over the situation.  
“Ah that’s where you’re wrong. Never use a pick up line. It’s all about how you act in the context of a situation.” He replied, regaining his confidence.  
“Oh?” you said tilting you head to the side slightly.  
“Yeah, for example, if I were to treat this situation as such.” He leaned forward so his lips were right next to your ear. “I would lean forward like this.” You skin was already littered will goose pimples as he continued in a hushed whisper “And I would tell you how sweet you sound moaning my name and if you would let me, I would like the pleasure of hearing it again at my own hands.”  
Your eyes went wide and you stilled. He gently bit on your earlobe before leaning back in his seat. You were unable to move, heat spreading across your face as he shrugged and said “But I would only do that, if I were trying to entice you into-“ He was cut off but you standing abruptly and walking out the restaurant. You were mortified. You didn’t even pick up your bag, you just needed to get away.  
Shit. Vincent thought to himself. He wasn’t expecting that reaction. He placed money on the table before grabbing your bag and rushing after you. He saw you a little way down the street sitting on a bench. You didn’t look at him as he sat next to you.  
There was a heavy silence between the two of you until you muttered “I’m so sorry”.  
Vincent turned toward you “Why are you sorry, it is me that should apologise. I guess 30 years in a coffin has impaired my ability to read a situation.” He said awkwardly scratching the back of his neck.  
Your embarrassment quickly turned into anger. You turned to face him “Why and how were you listening in on my anyway?” You looked at him, demanding an answer. You were still embarrassed, but you were mad that your privacy had been invaded in such a way.  
“I was in the room next to yours.” He answered. You put your head in your hands, wanting the ground to shallow you whole. “Please don’t be embarrassed. When I said we are very much on the same page I meant it in respect to that as well.”  
You looked up at him again “What do you mean?”  
“I mean by what I was doing in the next room over.” He looked down, it was his turn to feel embarrassed. He had heard you, it was only fair that he felt the awkwardness of telling you, so you pushed him further “What were you doing?”  
He knew what you were getting him to say. He agreed that it was only fair, considering the embarrassment he had caused you.  
He lifted your chin up so he could look directly into your eyes. “I was pleasuring myself to the thought of you.” You heart was hammering in your chest at his confession “And my desire was fueled to new heights at the sound of your moans.” His thumb ran over your bottom lip slowly “I was telling the truth when I said I like the pleasure of hearing it again.”  
You couldn’t stop the quiet moan that passed your lips. “But, I am happy to wait-“ You stopped him mid-sentence by crushing your lips to his.  
His eyes widened at the sudden action before quickly closing as you both melted into the kiss. The kiss intensified, becoming needy until you were interrupted by an older man yelling out a window for you to get a room.  
You broke apart, agreeing to take the mans advice. The walk back to the inn took longer than it should have as you both kept stopping to steal a kiss from the other.  
When you got to the door of your room Vincent was already on you. Peppering your neck with kisses. As soon as the door was opened, he lifted you up and pinned you to the other side of the door. You wrapped your legs around his waist as he kissed down your throat, hungrily trailing down to the swell of your cleavage. You could feel his arousal digging into where you needed it most. He kissed your shoulder, nudging the strap of your dress down your arm.  
As he was doing this you started undoing the buttons of his shirt. You felt him still at this and you remembered his insecurities about his scars. You lifted his head to look at you. “If you’re going to be seeing me, it’s only fair I can see you. Speaking of which…” You said looking at his bandana still wrapped about his forehead. He nodded slightly, giving you the go ahead to lift your hands to the back of his head to undo the red fabric.  
When it fell to the ground, you pressed a firm kiss to his forehead, entwining your fingers into his soft hair. He relaxed and continued kissing your collarbone. As you finished undoing his shirt, he moved you both to the bed. Sat on the edge of the bed with you straddling him. He broke the kiss “I don’t have any protection.” You kissed him again before looking over at the clock and replying “Ah, I don’t think any shops will be open and I don’t have anything. I’m pretty sure I can’t conceive, but to be safe we just won’t risk it.”  
Vincent had to admit he felt disappointment as he waited for you to get off of him. Much to his surprise though you ran your hand over the tight fabric covering his crotch. He let out a gasp “What are you doing.”  
You moved to kneel in between his legs, you looked up at him almost innocently as you started to undo his trousers. “Something that definitely can’t result in pregnancy.”  
He watched you, lost for words as you pulled his trousers off. His erection was long and hard as his tented his boxers. It was bigger than you had expected. Not that you thought he would be small, you just had never seen one this big. You couldn’t help but gently bite your bottom lip. Vincent saw this and it made his cock visibly twitch. You reached to rub his erection through the thin fabric of his pants. He let out a moan and his gauntlet dug into the blanket on the bed. You pulled the waist band of his pants down allowing Vincent’s member to spring free.  
You looked back up at Vincent, making sure you had full eye contact with him as you licked all the way from the base of his shaft to the head. His eyes rolled back as he let out a low, almost growl like moan. His hand moved to grip into your hair was you swirled you tongue around the head, getting a taste of the pre cum that had collected at the tip.  
You teased him like that for a few minutes, enjoying the noises of pleasure and frustration coming from him. Vincent was trying his best to stop himself bucking up into your throat of pushing your head down.  
You knew what he wanted, so you decided to finally give it to him. You pushed your head down. Taking him deep into your throat, before moving back, gasping as you took his cock out your mouth. “Fuuck!” Vincent said loudly with a shaky voice. You hadn’t expected Vincent to be vocal in the bedroom, but it was a very pleasant surprise. It spurred you on to hear it again. Worked him hard and fast, you hand working that part of his shaft you couldn’t quite reach with your mouth.  
His moans got louder and more erratic, as he started bucking up to fuck your throat. You knew he was close so worked him even harder. Cupping his balls in your hand to add to the sensation. With a harsh buck of his hips and a moan that got lost in his throat he unloaded into your mouth. His pulsating cock pushing his seed down your throat. The thick liquid tasted salty was you swallowed it all.


	14. Reciprocation

You wiped the corner of your mouth as you moved back to sit on your heels. Vincent was lying back on the bed getting his breath back. You stood up and moved to lay next to him. You looked at his beautiful face as he continued staring up at the ceiling for a moment. You smiled as he turned to face you. A look of amazement still on his face.   
“That…was amazing” He said, gently brushing a strand of hair out of your face. He lent over to you to place a kiss on your lips. He gently ran his hand down the curve of your hip to your bare thigh. Before you knew what he was doing, he pulled you on top of him. You were straddling his hip.   
“As beautiful as you look in this dress, you’re making me feel quite underdressed.” He smirked as he started to slowly lift your dress over the tops of your thighs and bottom. He paused when he realised you had been wearing a thong under your dress. He gave your cheek a firm squeeze before continuing to rid you of your dress.   
Now you were in on top of him, in nothing but your underwear. Vincent felt his blood make its way back to his crotch. He sat up to be face to face with you. He looked you in the eyes and said “You are truly one of, if not the most beautiful woman on this planet.” You were lost for words. Instead of saying anything you cupped his face in your hands and kissed him deeply. His arms wrapped around you and carefully unhooked your bar. You pulled back slightly to allow the garment to slip off of your arms.   
Vincent’s eyes scanned over your chest. His eye filled with hunger. He lifted his hand to hold the weight of your full bosom and flicked his thumb over your already hardened nipple. A quiet moan fell from your lips. Vincent moved his hand to the other breast. You could tell he wanted to use both hands, but he was worried he may hurt you with the gauntlet.   
“You can touch me with both hands.” You said to him. You knew he was about to object due to the sharpness of the golden piece of armor. “I don’t mind if you take it off.” You told him.   
He hesitated. You slowly took his gauntlet in your hand. His eyes were on yours the whole time as you slowly unclipped the metal. Carefully sliding in from his hand. The skin it uncovered was much darker than the rest of his skin and taught with scarring. You ran your thumb of his knuckles then laced your fingers with his. “See, much better.” You said with a smile.  
Vincent responded by kissing and nipping at your collarbone. Slowly making his way down to your breasts. He gently took your nipple between his lips, flicking his tongue over it hardening it further. You noticed that he was still hesitant in using his other hand, so you lifted it to your other breast. He took your encouragement and started massaging. You let out a moan and unintentionally ground your hips down on him.   
The contact was blocked only by the thin fabric of your thong. Vincent could already feel the warmth radiating from your core. This served to fully restore Vincent's erection. You moaned louder as you felt his shaft press against you.   
Vincent stood up, lifting you. He turned and placed you down on the bed. Vincent stood, looking over your nearly naked form for a moment before reaching down to slowly strip you of your thong. You lifted your hips slightly, to make it easier for him.   
Once it was removed, Vincent pushed your knees to your chest, exposing your slick folds to him. Holding your knees up with one hand, he used the other to gently trail his fingers down your slit. You let out a staggered moan and he a grunt of approval.   
He released your knees, letting them rest back on the bed. With his fingers still teasing, he leaned down to kiss your neck. Your breathing was heavy, and your hips bucked up to meet his touch.   
“So eager for my touch.” He said coolly before biting how on your earlobe. “Tell me what you want.”   
You had to use all your focus to make words. You brought your hands to his face to help focus on his eyes. “You. I want you.” You finally said. You saw his red eyes intensify at your words and he quickly thrust a finger into you. You gasped at the sudden intrusion.   
Vincent was slowly working your inner wall with his finger as he began kissing down your body before settling on his knees in between your legs. He removed his finger from you, but before you could protest, he used it to circle your clit. The change in sensation made your thighs tremble.   
He kissed up your thigh, before replacing his hand with his mouth. “Fuck!” you gasped in surprise. Hands finding their way into his dark hair. He lapped at you, savoring the taste of you. Sucking lightly on your clit as he inserted his finger into you again. He moved it in time with his tongue. His name falling from your lips was like music to his ears. As you got louder, he could sense you were nearing your release. He took this as the go-ahead to add a second finger. You cried out in ecstasy as he began relentlessly pumping his fingers into your pussy. Your inner walls tensed around his digits as you came. Vincent continued until you had come down from your high and your legs were trembling.


	15. The morning after

You two spent the rest of the night entwined with one another, savoring the feeling of the skin on skin contact. It was as if the two of you had forgotten about the rest of the world for one night. All there was, was the pair of you.  
You explored the curves and textures of each other’s skin. You talked about almost everything, but every now and again found yourselves just looking into each other’s eyes. You had seen brief glimpses of the man lying next to you, but it felt like you were finally getting to know him.   
The next morning Vincent woke up before you. As you slowly opened your eyes, you could tell he had been watching you “Good morning” he said, voice raspy. “It definitely is” You replied, leaning over to place a soft kiss on his lips. Your kiss was interrupted by a loud beep from your phone. You knew you had to get back to the reality of life today, but you couldn’t help but feel a little resentful of the fact.   
As if Vincent could hear your thoughts, he replied “I know, I would like to stay for longer too.”  
You sat up and reached over to your phone. You had a message from Cloud  
‘Meeting by the bridge in an hour. See you there.’   
You showed Vincent the text and he put his clothes back on. “I’m going to go back to my room to get changed. I’ll wait for you downstairs.” You could tell he was reluctant to leave your company.  
“Maybe when all this is done, we can do this again” You said with a shy smile.  
He smiles back at you “I’d like to make it a habit” he said before giving you one last kiss before leaving your room.  
You showered and dressed fairly quickly and made your way downstairs. To your surprise, sitting down next to Vincent was Cid. The blonde man looked up at you as you came down the stairs. He had a smirk on his face and chuckled as he stood up. “C’mon love birds” He said making his way out of the door.   
Your eyes widened and you looked at Vincent who wore his usual stern expression. “Don’t worry, I’m not one for gossip.” Cid said chuckling again at your face.  
The three of you made your way to the meetup point in relative silence. Tifa, Barrett, and Red were already there waiting when you got there.   
“When Spiky and the others get their ass’s here we’ll get going. We’re headed west to Nibelheim.” As Barratt was making sure you were all up to date on the plan, he noticed Cid rubbing his eyes. “You ok?” He asked the man.   
“Yeah just tired.” Cid replied  
“Tired!? We just had a day layin’ about!” He said laughing at the man.  
“Yeah well there was some couple in the room next to me havin’ a bit of a wild time. Kept me up half the night.” He replied. You tried to act like you didn’t notice him glance at you, but you could tell from the smirk on Tifa’s face that she noticed it.   
“Well no nappin’ today! We gotta long day ahead of us.” Said Barratt, oblivious to the situation.  
Once the whole team was together, you started on your way. The events of the night before had left you with an optimism that you hadn’t felt in what felt like forever. The fight that you were fighting had a new meaning today. Your fight to save the world was also your fight for your chance with Vincent. You had both been through so much, and it felt like you were being given another chance at happiness.   
You had been traveling for a couple of days before you began to realise that you should have arrived at Nibelheim by now.   
“Barratt, I think we’re going in the wrong direction.” Tifa said looking around.   
“I’m following the map!” The man exclaimed punching a nearby tree. You were all exhausted and the idea of sleeping in a cramped tent again was horrible to all of you. You decided to try and diffuse his mood “Well why don’t you guys stay here and Tifa and I will go on a little further to make sure. At least you guys can rest up and if we are off track we can see if there are any landmarks that might tell us where we are.”  
Tifa nodded at your suggestion and Cloud agreed.   
You gave Vincent a smile before leaving with your friend. The two of you began walking and talking. You told her about what had happened on your date and after. You didn’t divulge every detail, much to Tifa’s disappointment.   
You two hadn’t been walking for more than about 45 minutes before you came to a large lake. On the other side of the lake was what appeared to be a cave opening. The two of you decided to check it out before heading back to the others. The lake itself would work as a good landmark, but you couldn’t turn down the opportunity to explore a cave, especially seeing as though there was a faint blue glow coming from this one.  
You walked into the cave. It was eerily quiet but really bright for a cave. You could see clearly without a torch and the walls seemed to be covered in a blue glassy stone. You were staring at the glistening when you heard Tifa call you from around the corner. You turned the corner to see what she needed when the slight before you stopped you in your tracks.   
There was a woman suspended in what seemed like a shine made up of the same glassy stone that covered the rest of the cave. She was beautiful, and despite never having seen the woman before, your heart sank as you knew who it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys,  
> Sorry it's been so long since I've updated. I wanted to work out where I wanted this to go before I continued, but I'm glad to say I have a plan!
> 
> Hope you like it :D


	16. Give him time

Your throat went dry. When Vincent and you began your friendship, you had asked him about her. He hadn’t ever gone into detail about Lucrecia, but he had once told you how she used to wear her hair and you knew it was no coincidence that the woman in front of you had her hair in the same way and was still wearing her lab coat. Like Vincent, she hadn’t seemed to age, but unlike Vincent she still had a slight tan to her skin. She had truly been preserved in time.  
“Is she still alive?” Tifa asked, not shifting her eyes from Lucrecia  
In all honestly, you didn’t know “We need to try and get her out” you said before taking one of your daggers and striking at the glass. As hard as you hit the material, it wouldn’t even budge, but you had to try for Vincent. Tifa stilled your arm and you wordlessly left the cave.   
Tifa followed you, confused by your reaction. You both walked back to the others in silence other than you telling Tifa you would take Vincent to the cave. Tifa put the pieces together in her mind and offered a small nod.  
The other all looked up as you returned. “The town isn’t up ahead, but there is a lake so we can find it on the map and know where to go” Tifa told them once you got there. You were trying to get the courage to speak to Vincent, but at this point, you were struggling to even look at him without crying.   
When you finally meet his eyes, you can see the concern in them. You know you can’t put it off for much longer so you walk over to him. “Everything ok?” he asks once you’re in front of him. “I need you to come with me.” You said, avoiding his question. He nods following you and you begin your journey back to the cave.  
Barrett saw the two of you walking off and was about to call after you about slacking off when Tifa stopped him. When the pair of you were out of earshot, she explained everything to the others.  
You didn’t speak to Vincent as you both walked. You felt like you might cry if you did. He could tell that something was bothering you but knew you would tell him when you were ready. When you finally approached the mouth of the cave you stood and turned to Vincent.   
You took his gloved hand in both of yours before looking him in the eyes. “I need you do to something for me.”  
“Anything.” He replied instantly.  
“I need you to follow your heart. And know that whatever happens, I understand.” You said sincerely.  
He looked confused.  
“Just promise me you will follow your heart.” You asked  
“I promise” He replied  
“Ok, come on” You said before leading him into the cave. Once you got to Lucrecia you turned back to face Vincent.  
His eyes were wide, and you could see his hands faintly tremble. The expression on his face was unreadable. “Are you ok?” you ask him, searching his face for any indication of that he was thinking. There was no detectable reaction and he walked past you towards Lucrecia.

You felt an ache in your chest and that pain in your sinuses that warned you of oncoming tears. You decided that that was your cue to leave. You know he needed to see her but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt like a knife through your heart.   
You made your way back to the group for the second time that day, too focussed on the pain in your heart to acknowledge the burning on the bottom of your feet. Tears streamed down your cheeks as you walked. You wanted to hope that there was still a chance for you and Vincent, but you couldn’t get his reaction out of your head. You could see the camp set up in the distance, so you took a moment to wipe your face and compose yourself.  
You take a deep breath in and head over. “We thought you two had gotten lost” Aerith said before noticing Vincent wasn’t with you. She peered behind you before asking where he was.  
“He’s still there” you said simply before sitting by the fire, finally resting your feet.   
“Ah can’t blame him, seein’ the love of his life like that.” Barratt said shaking his head.   
You could see both Cid and Tifa both look at you, but you remained silent. Everyone settled into chatter amongst themselves but your mind was far from the current conversations.   
It was late when everyone started settling into the tents for the night. Vincent still hadn’t returned.  
You couldn’t sleep and being in that tent knowing that Vincent wasn’t there wasn’t helping either. You decided to get some fresh air. As you left the tent you heard Cid say, “Can’t sleep?”  
It was his turn to take watch and he was sitting leaning up against a nearby tree smoking a cigarette. You walked over to him sat down next to him. He offered you a cigarette and you took one. You didn’t even smoke, but you had heard that some people use them to clear their heads. He offered you a light and you lit the tip of the cigarette. The sudden invasion of smoke into your lungs maked you cough loudly, earning a small chuckle from Cid.   
The pair of you sat in silence for a few minutes before Cid spoke up. “Now I’m no expert on these things, but just give him time.”


	17. Can't find the words

You don’t know how long you sat there before falling asleep, but you woke up to find yourself in the tent. Everyone was still asleep, and you sat up a looked around in the hopes of seeing a red cape. Disappointment filled you when you didn’t see him. You laid back down until you realised that Cid was now sleeping on the other end of the tent. You sat back up and your whole team bar Vincent was accountable. So, who was keeping watch?  
You didn’t want to alarm anyone, but you knew someone had to keep watch at all times, so you got up as quickly and quietly as possible. The sun was still low in the sky but it was light enough that you didn’t need a torch to make your way to the tree that Cid had been sitting at last night.   
You sat down and hugged your knees to your chest. You had managed to hold back tears in front of the others, but your newfound isolation welcomed fresh tears to fall down your cheeks as you look toward the direction of the cave. You wondered if Vincent would ever leave that cave. Would he abandon the mission? The group? You? It all felt so unfair. To have happiness displayed in front of you, only for it to be taken away.  
You felt a gust of wind behind you and hugged your knees a little tighter. You considered going back to the tent to get your jacket but you didn’t want to risk waking anyone and them seeing the sorry state of your tear-streaked face.   
You all but jumped out of your skin as you felt a weight being placed over your shoulders.  
“You’ll catch your death sitting out here without a jacket” your heart pounded as Vincent spoke softly, settling to sit next to you. You just stared at him for a moment. Not knowing what to say. You had so many questions, that you didn’t feel you had the right to ask. Eventually, you settled with a small thank you, quickly wiping the tears from your face and trying to compose yourself.   
The silence between you was thick. Neither really knowing what to say.   
“You ok?” you said watching him closely.  
He didn’t answer you. Instead, he turned to face you and said “Thank you for taking me there. I’m sorry for letting you walk back alone.”  
You gave him a gentle smile, “That’s fine. There’s not many creatures on that route and I can handle myself”  
“I know.” He replied, he hadn’t meant it like that, but he was struggling to find the right words.   
You could see the lost expression on his face. Seeing him like that made you almost forget all of your own upset. Barratt had been right; it must have been devastating for him to see her like that. All you wanted was to support him so you asked “How do you feel about it all?”  
He let out a sigh, looking for the right words, but he just couldn’t find them.  
“It’s ok” you offered “Seeing the” you swallowed before continuing “love of your life like that…there can’t be any easy way of putting that into words.” You looked down at your knees, not having the strength to look at him as you said it. His eyes widened slightly as he looked at you. He was about to say something when he was interrupted by someone loudly unzipping the tent.   
You both turned and you rose to your feet, making your way to the others.   
You organised yourselves and got ready to make your way north to Nibelheim. You knew going to Nibelheim was emotionally draining for Tifa, Cloud, and Vincent so you did your best to be as positive as possible. You reassured Tifa that you were ok when she asked and did your best to keep her mind occupied on positive things.  
You tried your best to speak with Vincent and Red as you walked, trying to act as you did before anything had happened between you and Vincent, but the ache in your heart made it a bit too much so you decided to keep your distance.  
The journey to Nibelheim was a good few hours. When you got there Barrett took out his phone and dialed a number before walking away from the group to take the call. You all stood and waiting for him to finish. When he finally returned he said “Right, my contact is gonna meet us by the old reactor. Spikey, Tifa, you come with me. The rest of y’all, stock up of supplies. We need potions, grenades, ammo, and a couple of phoenix downs. Cid, I’ll give ya a call when we’re done, and we’ll meet back here. Might be a while though. This guy loves to talk!” With that, the trio was on their way.


	18. Not what you think

Cid took it upon himself to then delegate jobs. He told Aerith and Yuffie to handle the potions and instructed Red and Cait Sith to join him in getting ammo. “Is there anything you need us to do?” you asked Cid. He turned to Red “You guys go ahead, I’ll be with ya in a minute.” Red nodded and left with Cait. Cid then turned to you and Vincent. “You guys go and figure whatever the fuck is going on with you. Can’t believe I’m sayin’ this but this atmosphere is worse than being in a room next to you guys.” With that Cid left you both in awkward silence.   
“Are you ok?” you asked Vincent. You were genuinely concerned about him. He had been through a lot in the last couple of days and those feelings can’t be made any better being in Nibelheim. He was silent, just looking at you for a moment. It was hard to read his face as it was mostly covered by his cloak. “Let’s go for a walk.” Was all he said as he started walking.   
You made your way to the ShinRa mansion and he led you inside. You wordlessly followed him to the basement. You wanted to ask him why he was taking you down here but decided to just trust him and let him lead on. The last time you had been there was when the team had found Vincent.   
You both entered the small room where his coffin still sat. If you had been with anyone else you would have been terrified, but you felt safe with Vincent. “I know this isn’t the nicest of places, I just wanted to be able to speak freely without interruption. I owe you some clarity.”  
You interrupted him before he could continue. “Please, don’t feel like you do. I just want you to be happy.”  
“Stop it!” You were taken aback by the volume and stern tone of his voice. He lowered his cloak so you could see his face. “Stop casting your own feelings aside. I know my actions have hurt you. Regardless of whatever reasoning you have given them.”  
“This isn’t about me though. This is about you and her.” You were getting a little angry. What was he trying to achieve? Did he want to see you cry over him?  
“And you think you have no influence over that?” He asked.  
“Of course, I don’t! Do you think I’m so naïve to think that a few nights together can undo a lifetime of love and devotion?”  
Vincent looks down, “You’ve got it wrong.”  
“Well, you could have fooled me. The only reason you joined us in the first place was to avenge her, and the moment you saw her…” You paused a moment, you felt ashamed at yourself for your selfish thoughts, but you need to get it off your chest “I can’t compete with that.” You looked down, fighting off tears that threatened to spill. You were wringing your hands together until they were stilled by a large gloved hand.   
“I’ve made a mistake in the way I have handled our relationship.”   
You couldn’t stop a tear from falling as you wait for him to put a formal end to whatever had been growing between you.   
“I have tried to be reserved in my feelings. I tried to ignore my feelings for you at first. I felt that I was too old to be doing this again, too damaged, and too much of a burden to put upon someone else. I thought that my chance of love had passed the day Lucrecia told me she was going to marry Hojo, but the last few months have made me see things differently.”  
You looked up at him with wide eyes when he said this. Seeing the confusion in your eyes, he continued “I realise my love for her was more a love of who I thought she was. Her actions towards me that made me fall for her were motivated by guilt over my father’s death, and her attempts to save me were from guilt over the actions of her husband. And just like her, I have been driven by guilt.” Vincent was still holding onto your hand. “Of course, there are still feelings there, but they are not how you think.”   
Truth be told, you didn’t know what to say so you just looked up at him. You jumped slightly as Vincent suddenly wrapped his arms around you. You settled into the embrace quickly. You let out a breath that you didn’t realise you were holding. It came out shaky and Vincent tightened his hold on you. His face was buried into your hair “My feelings for you have developed for the first time I saw you. Every interaction between us has changed my life, changed me, for the better. I’m sorry for giving you cause to doubt. You mean more to me than you realise.”  
You pulled back just enough to be able to pull him down for a kiss. His lips felt warm and comforting. Their presence against your own reassuring you that everything would be ok. Tears were still streaming down your cheeks and Vincent wiped them away with his thumb. When you finally broke the kiss you looked up at him with a soft smile before burying your face in his chest, holding onto him tightly.


	19. The loss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I rewrote this chapter after it was brought to my attention that I had made a bit of a mistake on the timeline. Even though this story is definitely not completely following the canon story, my mistake would have messed up the route. Sorry about that! Hope you guys still like it though

You don’t really know how long you stayed there, letting the feeling of relief wash over you. When you finally parted you looked up at his handsome face “We should head back, the others are probably waiting for us” you said. Vincent agreed and you made your way back to the meeting point. Vincent’s reassurance that whatever you had between you could progress had givien you a boost in motivation for the mission your team was on to stop Sephiroth. You had been fighting because you had nothing to lose, but now you were fighting for what you had to keep.   
You had returned to find the others in a panic. “What’s wrong?” you asked Tifa. She shook her head in worry “It’s Aerith. She’s gone off on her own.” “What do you mean?!” you asked, looking at the others for some more clarity when Cloud finally spoke up “She’s gone to fight Sephiroth alone. We’re going after her.”   
The feeling of unease was heavy and didn’t ease up in the days it took to travel north to the forgotten city. Silence seemed to plague the group on your journey, only broken when absolutely necessary. No one knew what awaited once you found your friend, but the ache of dread pulled at your chest.   
You hadn’t even really spoken to Vincent one on one in those days, you hadn’t got the chance to. Anxiety plagued the group. It was as though you knew what was to come, but nothing would have prepared you for it.   
You would never forget the day you walked into the forgotten city. It was eerie. The air was stagnant. Broken buildings that used to be homes to a lost race were dotted around. You finally found your friend praying at the altar. You couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she looked. The bright pink of her dress was almost radiant against the ice blue that surrounded her.   
You don’t know where he had come from. The long blade of the Masamune slid through her with ease. A cry was lost in your throat as you watched her slump forward, held up by the blade still in her chest before it was ripped away. She was gone.  
Your ears were ringing and you couldn’t hear the exchange between Cloud and Sephiroth. The ringing stopped as you watched Cloud carefully lift the lifeless body of the sweet girl you had come to know. Your hands were shaking as he laid her down into the water.   
You couldn’t remember much of the days that followed. The loss of Aerith had hit everyone hard. It was just a few long days of travel. You were cold to your bones as you walked through the thick snow towards the inn. You were all tired, cold, hungry, and grieving your friend. You were the first to the reception. You really weren’t in the mood for the whole ‘room allocation malarky’. You needed to be with Vincent and at this point, you didn’t care about any remarks or side glances you might get.   
It was only once you got the key that you realised that no one had allocated rooms and were all just getting a room as soon as possible, so you were able to go with Vincent to your room undetected. You were still shivering once you got into the room. “Take off your boots, they’re full of snow,” Vincent said, motioning to your feet. You nodded before sitting on the edge of the bed and fumbling with the laces. Vincent removed both his sabatons in the time it took you to undo the laces of one shoe. Your fingers were still numb. Vincent knelt down in front of you and took the other boot off quickly. You muttered a thank you as he sat down beside you. He lifted one of the towels that were on the bed and draped it over your shoulders, wrapping you in it and holding you tightly in his arms.  
Nothing was said as his hand rubbed up and down your back. The friction easing the chill and finally, your muscles stopped twitching. You leaned into his embrace, resting your head on his shoulder. You couldn’t stop the tears that began to fall down your cheeks. It was all too much. You felt drained. Drained from the grief, drained from the relentless traveling, and drained from the cold. At this point, you were openly sobbing. Vincent tightened his arms slightly and began stroking your hair.   
You cried until you felt like you had no tears left. How long it had been, you didn’t really know, but Vincent had held you the whole time. Once your sobs subsided he kissed your hair softly before pulling back to look at you. His thumb wiped away a tear that still clung to your cheek. You sniffed before finally speaking “I’m sorry Vincent. You must be tired too. The last thing you need is me-“ “The only thing I need is you. Now, I’ll get the fire going and you should go and take a warm bath.” He gave a small smile. You couldn’t believe how lucky you were to have gained the affection of such a wonderful man. You returned his smile and gave him a quick hug before making your way to the en-suite bathroom. You had paid a premium price for this room in your hurry to get a room and now you were glad you did.   
The bath filled quickly. You stripped your clothes and stepped into the bath. The warm water soothed your aching muscles and warmed your bones. Once relaxed you scrubbed yourself clean, having no access to a proper shower for days had taken its toll. The bath seemed to ease you. The water was hardly warm when you finally got out. You wrapped yourself in a clean towel and emptied the bath, only to refill it with clean water for Vincent. You walked back into the bedroom to find Vincent fast asleep on to of the bed. He was still wearing his cape. He looked so cute nestled into the high collar, unruly hair falling perfectly around his face. You wanted to let him sleep but knew he would feel much better after a bath too.   
You sat on the bed next to him. His eyes fluttered open at the shift in the mattress. He sat up groggily. “I’ve run you a bath” you said placing a kiss on his forehead. He responded with a sleepy kiss to your cheek. Whilst Vincent was in the bath you got dressed into some comfortable clothes. Vincent had taken the time to place them near the fire, so they would be warm when you got changed, so you decided to do the same for him.   
He didn’t carry a lot with him on his travels and only had a small bag. You pulled his black pajamas from the bag, struggling with how squashed in they were. Upon pulling them out you heard something fall from the bag and onto the floor. It was a small metal box. No bigger than a mobile phone. You wanted to open it, but you knew not to. Even though curiosity was burning in you, you forced your hands to place it back into the bag.


	20. A Blessing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a little bit of a filler chapter. I struggled writing this one because I didn't really know how to bridge the story without a chapter like this.

You struggled to not stare at Vincent when he finally emerged from the bathroom, towel wrapped around his waist and damp hair clinging to his skin. The pitch-black hair making his skin look even more pale. It reminded you of that night you spent Junon. You replayed the events of the night in your head as he got dressed. Your mind stopped on the part when Aerith had chatted with you. A warm tear made its way down your cheek. Before it reached your chin, it was being wiped away. Vincent sat on the bed in front of you, cradling your face in his hand.   
You looked up into his eyes. You could see the exhaustion on his face, yet he was still focused on comforting you. “Let’s get some sleep” he nodded. He stood and walked around the bed before getting under the covers. He instantly wrapped his arms around you. Surrounded by his comfort, and utterly exhausted, you fell asleep quickly.  
You woke up a few hours later to an empty bed. You looked around the room for any sign of Vincent. His bag was still there, but his cape and boots were missing. He had told you of his nightmares before, so you figured he had gone out for a walk to clear his head. You laid back down, you couldn’t stop your mind from drifting to the small box you found in Vincent’s bag. Your mind was continually sifting through guesses of what its contents could be. Finally, curiosity got the better of you and you stood up. You padded over to the sideboard that Vincent’s bad was placed on. You paused for a moment, looking at the bag. Lifting the top slightly to peer in, you noticed the bag was empty. Wherever he has gone, he’s taken the box with him.   
Returning back to bed, a feeling a dread washed over you. Despite his reassurance in Nibelheim, you couldn’t stop your mind from tormenting you. You forced yourself to replay the words he spoke ‘I thought that my chance of love had passed the day Lucrecia told me she was going to marry Hojo, but the last few months have made me see things differently’   
When had you become so clingy? When did your ability to sleep become dependent on convincing yourself of a man's love? Probably around the time you realised that you had nothing left of the life you once knew. You hadn’t let yourself think too much on what happened back then, those months locked in a glass container. Instead, you blocked it out. Your body wasn’t littered with scars like Vincents, but your mind was another matter. The family you have come to know in Vincent, Tifa, and the others had been a blessing.   
Your thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door clicking open, followed by careful steps. “Hey.” You whispered. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you” Vincent replied, voice matching yours.   
“It’s ok, I was already awake.”  
He nodded in reply. You noticed him slip the small box back into his bag before moving to remove his cape and boots and climbing back into bed. He was tense as he laid on his back. You watched him as he stared at the ceiling “May I?” you said, motioning to his side. He blinked a couple of times before his face softened and he answered. “Of course,” he wrapped his arms around you and let you rest your head on his chest.   
Despite the loss you had faced, the peace you felt in that moment was indescribable. You were right, this new, dysfunctional family you had found was truly a blessing.  
The next day the mood among the group had changed. The loss, whilst still evident was accompanied by a sense of determination.   
All eyes were on Cloud as told everyone the plans to stay in the town for a few days to prepare for the journey to Sephiroth. “We’ll need to explore the town a bit, make sure we have everything we need before we continue on. The longer we go on, the more difficult it will be to turn back.” You noticed him look at Vincent briefly as he spoke, but decided to ignore it.   
Everyone broke off into groups and you noticed Cloud went off on his own leaving Tifa to watch him leave. Vincent saw you go to Tifa so he took his cue to leave, joining Cid.


	21. Piece by Piece

You walked with Tifa in silence, trying to think of the right way to ask her if she was ok. In the end, you decided to just keep it simple. “Tifa” she paused her steps and turned to look at you. She had that smile on her face. The one she wore when she was trying to cover her sadness. “Are you ok?”   
She stood silent for another moment until you could see the shine of tears building in her eyes. She let out a shaky breath “No.” her voice was no more than a whisper. That’s when she broke. Tears spilled down her cheeks and you wrapped your arms around her, allowing her to bury her face into your shoulder.   
She sobbed for a few minutes as you rubbed her back soothingly. Once her crying subsided she looked up at you. “I’m worried about him. He’s different. I know people change, but this… this is different. And now, since Aerith, I’m worried that he’s losing himself.” Her eyes searched your face, as if looking for an answer. Truthfully, you didn’t have one. So you just tried to think, what would she advise you to do? “Have you spoken to him about your worries?”   
“How can I without him thinking I’m speaking as a jealous lover instead of a worried friend?” She made a good point. It would be easy to brush off her concerns that way. “Maybe just make sure he knows you're there for him. As a friend.” You felt like your advice was lacking, but Tifa still smiled and nodded “Yeah, I guess that’s the only thing to do for now.” Tifa let out a sigh before continuing “Why does sex have to complicate everything?” She said with a slight chuckle.  
You hummed in contemplation at her question. “Speaking of which…” she started, her voice seeming a bit lighter. “How complicated have things been for you lately?” she had a cheeky expression on her face that caused you to laugh out loud. When the laughing died down Tifa carried on “No, in all seriousness, how are things with Vincent?” You let out another little chuckle. Even when her own heart is breaking, she still wants to make sure yours is intact.   
“Yeah, its good. It’s a strange situation, but after everything, I think I would be a little unsettled if it was too smooth a run.” Tifa nodded knowingly. “You never did tell me how that date went.” She eyed you expectantly. When you stayed silent, she spoke up again “Well? Did at least get a kiss?”You could feel a blush on your face from recalling that evening. You nodded and replied “Yup” before continuing walking, hoping she would not press further. She let out an ‘ohh’ and skipped to catch up with you. “Did you…do anything else? Anything more?”   
“Yup” you tried to sound as matter of fact as possible. Her eyes went wide “DID YOU HAVE SEX?!”  
“Jesus quiet down!” you hushed your friend. “No, not technically. We just, you know, did stuff.” You felt like a teenager getting embarrassed telling Tifa. Holding in her giggles she replied, “Like hand stuff or mouth stuff?” by now you were also stifling your giggles “both”. When you finally answered, you both cracked up laughing.   
The two of you carried on walking arm in arm as you told her about the embarrassment of Cid being in the next room. You were glad to see Tifa laughing. You then told her of your conversation with Vincent in the basement of the Shin Ra mansion. “I’m glad you two are giving this a go. Don’t think I didn’t notice you two getting a room together” she said playfully nudging you.   
“Yeah, I get a lot of comfort from being near him. Though there’s so much about him that I don’t know, and I wonder if I will ever truly know him.” Your voice took on a serious yet wondering tone. Tifa smiled at you “Only time will tell, just enjoy finding out piece by piece.” She gave you a little reassuring wink. “Oh, I almost forgot. I saw him sitting on the roof of the inn late last night. He was looking at a piece of paper. I think he might have been reading something.”   
You shrugged slightly, “Your guess is as good as mine.” 

Meanwhile, Cid and Vincent were walking in silence before Cid decided to break the silence. “Once this is all done, what are ya plans?” Cid wasn’t normally one to pry into people's lives, he thought Shera did that enough for the both of them. But he had grown quite fond of his cape-wearing comrade. He had also grown quite fond of you and couldn’t help but become emotionally invested in yours and Vincent’s relationship. Vincent thought for a moment “I don’t know”. Silence surrounded them once again. “Well, you can’t go back to playing Dracula. Not now.”   
Vincent eyed Cid, questioning “Don’t look at me like that. You know what I’m talkin’ about.”   
Vincent cleared his throat “I won’t be so bold as to assume my place in another's life. No matter how much I would like to be there.” Once again silence fell, but this time it was Vincent who spoke up again “30 years of solitude has done nothing for my ability to understand women. Quite frankly, the whole situation scares me.” Cid tried his best to hide the shock at Vincent’s revelation, but he held it together and thought for a moment before answering. “I don’t know much bout these things, but I know 30 years of thinkin’ bout one woman might help you understand that one woman, but it won't do shit in helpin’ you understand (Y/N).”


	22. Trying to understand

Later that day, Cid and Vincent returned to the inn. They had stocked up on necessities and were apparently the first ones back. Cid made his way to the bar and Vincent wordlessly made his way to the room you shared. He sat down on the side of the bed, his mind full of what Cid had said. He chuckled bitterly to himself, the pilot had a point, but 30 years of thinking about Lucrecia hadn’t even helped him to understand her. His hand curled around the metal container in his pocket. Lucrecia had placed it in the coffin with him after she had tried to save him.

It had been his only personal possession other than his guns and clothes. He opened it. Hidden inside were two folded pieces of paper and a wilted rose petal. Unfolding one revealed an old letter that he had read many times. He looked at the familiar handwriting. Many hours had been spent breaking his heart over the words of sorrow. Lucrecia expressed her regret for how things had turned out. She spoke of the guilt and pain of never holding her child. As he read through the words he could recite from his memory, he braced himself for the inevitable heaviness that would hit his chest. It normally hit hardest in the last few lines ‘ _As I look at your still face, I can’t help but wish you would open your eyes again and look up at me with those wonderful red eyes. All I can say is that I’m sorry. I’m sorry I’ve ruined what could have been for you. I at least hope I have made it so that someday you will be able to read this._ ’

When he had read this in the past, his heart had ached. It was a torment that he couldn't stop inflicting on himself. There was comfort in the pain. It was a feeling that he had grown accustomed to. It was familiar and he accepted it. After all, it was the only way he could repent for his inaction. This time, however, sat in a room that you had been in, looking over at your pajamas that were draped over the chair in the corner of the room, it felt different. Whilst there was still a pang of sadness, it didn’t cut as deep. Realising this, guilt flowed through him. The guilt of moving on and abandoning his penance had been haunting him since the first time he kissed you. He still had a misplaced sense of loyalty to Lucrecia and he couldn’t shake the feeling that the more he involved himself with you, the more he was ruining your life. He felt that his feelings for you were dooming you to a life of misery. He couldn't allow you to share the burden of his sins. To take on the burden of him.

Hearing footsteps approaching the door, he quickly folded the paper back into the box and concealed it back in his pocket. You were stood in the corridor of the inn finishing your conversation with Tifa before you parted ways. “Right, well I think I’m going to hit the shower then have an early night.” Tifa said, rolling her shoulders. You let out a laugh “The woman who can roundhouse kick a man into next week, tired from carrying a couple of bags of supplies” you said jokingly. Tifa shoved you playfully, “Don’t you have somewhere better to be?” she said with a wink before offering you a wave as she darted around the corner to her room, leaving you standing in front of your own.

Opening the door you saw Vincent sat at the small desk on the other side of the room, disassembling one of his guns. “Hey.” You said closing the door behind you. He placed his gun on the desk and turned to you. “Did you and Cid get everything you needed?” you asked, offering him a smile. Every time you were alone with him, you couldn’t stop the feeling of butterflies making you slightly giddy. “Yes, did you?” he found that he had to force his words out. A few moments ago, he was telling himself that it was wrong of him to pursue you and the intrusive thoughts weighed him down. You noticed that something wasn’t quite right, so you placed the bag of supplies on the floor and rounded the bed to stand in front of him.

He looked up at you through some loose strands of his black hair. You gently pushed the hair from his face. “What’s on your mind?” Vincent couldn’t bring himself to share his thoughts. It wasn’t that he was trying to deceive you, but in that moment, looking into your eyes, he couldn’t understand how this could be wrong. It was as if the brief touch of your fingertips had wiped away his understanding of his thoughts. He didn’t answer you, instead, he reached up to pull you into a kiss.


End file.
